


To Charge Against the Heavens

by TheLandMaster



Category: One Piece
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-28
Updated: 2021-02-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:47:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 29,112
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27759370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheLandMaster/pseuds/TheLandMaster
Summary: The status quo is meant to be changed. Your actions always will resonate somewhere. Go forth, and challenge what stands against you. That is the road for freedom.Decided to post this here, even if I haven't updated it for quite some time. I'd be glad to hear critiques! (Just don't shit on me TOO hard)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

"Please sign the extra-dimensional form on the second line."

"No ma'am, I'm afraid tesseract-induced travel damages is not covered under your existence plan."

"May I recommend the planar existence bonus packages, sir? They guarantee a second attempt should you meet your untimely demise before the stated goal."

"I'm sorry, the ability to forcefully choose a love interest is only available to Plus Souls clients."

Sitting on the bench, I did the one thing I could. I waited. My feet shuffled on the floor, hands tucked between my knees as I eyed nervously the line of young men and women to my sides, all seated in similar plastic seats. Around us, crystalline walls formed small cubicles, each one seated by a woman or man in a pristine blue-and-gold three piece suit, two small wings protruding from behind their ears, talking eagerly with others, showcasing translucent forms and waving smalls sticks that wrote in soft glowing letters. To the left side, I saw a small line going onto a room where others entered glowing pods connected to the walls, a blinding light emanating from inside the closed ones. To the right, a figure clad in engraved plate-armor calmly ushered new arrivals through a beautifully-crafted metal archway, politely asking that they empty their pockets whenever the arch beeped with a chime. Above them, on the immaculate marble walls, a sign written in silver cursive, with two wings branded above it.

_TRANS-DIMENSIONAL RELOCATION CELESTIAL ENTERPRISES_

How did I get myself in this situation…

…

Oh yeah

**-O-**

"Dammit, I'm gonna be late!"

I rushed up the steep incline of my hometown, munching on a cereal bar and backpack bumping against my back. I looked down at my watch… 2:05pm. 25 minutes to run the rest of the 3 kilometers to school. I felt the wind brushing against my hair, careful not to trip on the loose rocks on the sidewalk. Ahead, I saw the crosswalk, ready for—

"… Wait a second."

I stopped just short of the crosswalk, cereal bar hanging like a cigar from my mouth. The train of thought that went by my head was quite simple:

An empty street.

Food hanging from my mouth.

Being late.

Running headlong onto said street without too much attention.

I took a few more seconds to look to the sides, yet I saw nothing. No parked cars, no pedestrians, not even birds or animals. Just me, the street. I pondered for a few seconds, before carefully putting my foot forward, just over the edge…

And reeled back immediately as a truck seemed to materialize out of thin air and dashed past me, billowing dust behind it and barely missing my extended foot. I fell back on the floor, fall cushioned by my backpack. But in a few seconds, I stood up again and brushed the dirt off my clothes.

"Oh-hoho… Nice try there, truck-kun. But it'll take more than that to send me to another world," I laughed out, taking a triumphant step forward…

"… Wait why do I hear La Cucaracha?"

_WHAM._

**-O-**

Turns out, when a regular truck fails to hit you, they send the taco truck next to "another world" you. Gotta say, that was not the twist I was expecting.

"Number 4487603528, please step forward to booth 114."

I peered down at the small slip of paper that had been given to me, and saw the long numbered sequence just spoken. A quick glance to the side found me booth 114, a green crystal light hovering lazily over it. A single chair sat right beneath it, and right in front, a counter with another attendant behind it. The only unique feature on her, unfortunately, were her cyan-crystal eyes and long blonde ponytail. Bar that, she… Honestly looked just like any other member of this… Group? Organization? Company, we'll go with company.

Looked kind of nervous though, with how rigid her posture seemed.

"Hello there!" she chimed out cheerfully, her eyes closed and head tilted slightly to the side. "I am pleased to offer Celestial Enterprises' services to you!"

"Umm… Thank you… Though, I wish you guys had been more uhh… Subtle… With your service offer."

"Please understand that Celestial Enterprises chooses its reward program members at random, sir, and we wish to at least be able to offer our services once" she added almost mechanically, carefully setting aside some papers. "We apologize if it caused you any problems, but rest assured you will be returned to your proper dimension after your reward period has been finished, or you declare your experience satisfactory". I took a moment to ponder that statement, chin resting on my hand.

"… So… I'm not exactly dead?"

"Yes, that is correct."

"So if I wanted to return…?"

"Provided the trial time has passed, you'd be free to return to your own plane."

"And the reverse?"

"Also true. Please sign in this line."

"Oh, sure… And my destination?"

"Pre-picked according to your preferences."

"Right... Okay, here you go."

"Alright, now please fill in this form with all the required information…"

Overall, it wasn't a very complex process. Just time-consuming. Writing everything down and handling all the paperwork for being isekai'd took much longer than I expected something like this to. The girl did help with the process, even if she did rush through it somewhat.

But in the end, I had everything written down. My chosen appearance, a broad-strokes background, place of origin…

And name.

Fullbring Saga.

World of destination: One Piece.

I held the small stack of papers trembling, scanning over every written detail. This… Would be me. My life for the foreseeable future… It was quite something.

"And with that settled, please follow me to the transport pod, sir!" said the attendant. With a wave of her hand, the table slid onto the walls and opened up passage, letting the girl walk away towards the corridor once to my left.

The room was significantly smaller than I had expected. Instead of an impossibly large room filled with thousands of people, instead there were… Ten pods, in a room about the size of a slightly-larger dinner room. It seemed to have emptied out compared to when I arrived. The pods were not glowing anymore, and instead were open, six metallic petals stretching outwards. Inside, a gel-like substance wiggled even in the lack of wind, with small holes all around the walls. I walked closer to one of them, but the attendant swiftly grasped my wrist and turned me to another pod, opposite to the one I had picked. I took one more glance at the gel, then myself, then her.

"… So do I… Undress, or something…?" I asked nervously, sliding my coat off my back. The girl simply pulled it back onto me and pushed me onto the pod without a warning, that way-too-cheerful smile still on her face. Surprisingly, I did not feel any cold from being pushed onto space Jel-O. It instead seemed to just wrap around and over my body, like the air had become solid. It wasn't… Bad. At least I didn't have to get naked for it. The girl pressed something on the sides of the pod, and the petal doors slowly closed over my view, giving one last glimpse of the attendant waving and smiling at me.

... Was her smile always so wide?

"Please enjoy your new experiences, sir, and have fun!"

Darkness came just as quickly… Followed by light.


	2. Chapter 2

Trumpets and drums rang over the air triumphantly as I wove my way through the crowds in the street, shoving to the side as gentle as I could to the sides when someone ended up blocking the path. The ragged cloak wrapped around my body fluttered, kicking up dust around my feet. The wooden houses became more and more spaced out as I moved towards the main street, hearing the music grow louder and louder and the crowd thicker.

"C'mon, excuse me… Please move… Lady, please _move,_ " I mumbled out, arm stretched outwards. I heard complaints and grunts, but I let those go unanswered. With one final push, I finally broke away from the cramped mass of people, and onto the less cramped edges. Even draped head-to-toe on a dusty brown cloak, with my face shadowed from view, it seemed people were more concerned with watching the oncoming parade. It made sense at least, I had arrived recently to the island and it wasn't a very big place, a parade of any kind would call attention. And it _was_ an interesting one.

Marine grunts marched in perfect formation, rifles resting against their shoulders and legs stretched out with every step. Right behind them, cannons and mortars rolled down pulled by horses in groups of six. Overall, standard Navy gear. But what came behind them certainly wasn't.

Right behind the artillery rolled up small jeeps and armored cars, toting heavy cannons and turrets atop them and spewing smoke from two smokestacks on their rears. Silver robots stamped down besides them, their armor shining against the high sun and lugging two gatling-guns strapped to their forearms. Between them, heavier looking models lugged large multi-barreled cannons, thumping loudly against the floor.

I watched the passing forces, letting out a low whistle. "Well, that's not something you see everyday."

"Tell me about it…" came the reply from the left. A quick peek to the side revealed a young couple holding each other close, eyeing the parade with a mix of apprehension and disgust. "The captain always liked showing his stuff, but this… This is new." That little finish got my attention.

"So, I take it the parades are common?"

"Not that much," added the girl, finally glancing over to me. If she was bothered by the full body cloak, she said nothing. "They only happen every five months or so."

"That infrequently? You'd think his ego would explode."

"He has to wait, he's only in charge when the commodore's away."

"Commodore?"

"Commodore Soku." answered the boy, in between waiting for the music to die down enough for a regular conversation. "He's the actual leader of the garrison. Captain Goto is only in charge in his absence." I gazed back, seeing a glimpse of a few more Marines on horses, carrying along flags bearing the island's emblem.

"Does he really have a reason to leave this much? The area seemed pretty damn quiet."

"We don't know why… He tends to leave pretty quickly sometimes, we always wondered where—Urgh, here he comes..."

The growing sound of metal grinding against stone and against itself, and a very loud and _big_ engine made me turn my head once again. And lo and behold, here comes the main show.

The _pièce de résistance_ of this parade was fittingly grand and pompous. Right at the rear, for all to see, came rolling an absolutely _massive_ tank. Its hull was painted a very dark green, a stark contrast to the more… I'll be generous and say heroic… colors the navy usually flaunted. It reminded me much of the colors of their battleships. Turrets and cannons peeked out from view slits all over it, and at the very top, the elongated main gun gave a clear warning of pain and destruction to those who challenged it. Right below it, standing as triumphantly as he could… The captain.

Credit where credit was due, he certainly had the look down. A massive brute of a man, with arms as thick as logs, a chest as broad as a barn, stretching the white tank top underneath to its limit. The classic white coat was draped over his shoulders, golden pauldrons glistening ever so slightly. White pants and heavy-duty construction boots covered his lower half, and from each side in his hip hung two whips, their length covered in square spikes. His hair was green and short, combed back in a spiky mess. It didn't help his face one bit though. Eesh, it's like someone tried to fix the mistake with a jackhammer but made it worse. The stupid big grin he had didn't help matters.

"Well, there's the captain," I muttered, tugging my hood carefully ever so more over my head. Didn't hurt to be careful, after all…

"PEOPLE OF NISSUS ISLAND! IT IS I, YOUR GLORIOUS CAPTAIN GOTO!" bellowed the man, his arm stretched outwards. "I HAVE COME, TO ALLOW YOU TO WITNESS THE GROWING GLORY OF THE MARINES! BEHOLD!"

"THESE ENGINES OF MIGHT AND JUSTICE WILL BE THE NEW PATH TO PEACE! YES, FOR IT IS, CAPTAIN GOTO, WHO HAVE DEIGNED TO CREATE THEM! ALL PIRATES AND ENEMIES OF THE GOVERNMENT WILL TREMBLE IN THEIR WAKE!"

"Sheesh, he's louder than ever today…" muttered the girl, eliciting a low chuckle from me. Not that the Marine didn't have a point, however. An arsenal like that would probably have given pause for most pirates or nations, should it come to be mass-produced. Of course, I already knew that the ones that would _need_ to be cowed by that really _wouldn't_. Said thoughts probably didn't cross his mind as he kept gesticulating like a madman, arms stretched upwards.

"YES, FOR THIS IS THE POWER OF THE GOVERNMENT! TREMBLE, AND BOW IN AWE OF THE—"

_SPLAT_

The perfect opening, of course, for the mother of all overripe tomatoes to smash against his face, covering his entire head and shoulders in thick tomato paste.

Now truth be told, _my_ reaction was clasp a hand over my mouth and muffle the laughter that barely escaped my lips. The reaction of the _crowd_ , however, was to gape in shock and horror at that particular image. To each their appropriate response, I suppose.

The captain, on the other hand…

For the briefest of moments, he remained silent. And still, like a statue. But ever so slowly, his entire body started trembling and shivering, his hands sloooooowly reaching for his whips, fingers almost strangling their handles. His eyes darted side to side, glancing over the entire crowd in an instant. Suddenly, he turned towards the left with a murderous glare, pulling out one his whips and lashing. The tip almost disappeared from sight as the weapon stretched out above everyone's heads. A crack of leather, a yelp, and a body went sailing towards the street. I heard gasps around me, but none louder than the couple that I had started a talk with.

"Oh no!"

"Matsu!"

"So… It's you again, you miserable little brat…" growled out Goto, his teeth grinding together in rage. "Yet again, you try to disrespect me and the foundation of Justice that I represent…". The captain grasped the second whip by his waist, letting both hang ominously as he near-strangled the grips for his weapons. Said whips began to spin around as Goto waved his hands, the tips disappearing into a solid wheel from sheer speed.

"Little punk! I will show you, the meaning of CHALLENGING JUSTICE!". The captain's arms shot forward, the whips disappearing in a blur and headed straight for the boy. Screams rose from the crowd, people wincing away from it.

I didn't feel the weight of the cape as I dashed forward.

That wouldn't do, would it?

**-O-**

_SNAP_

Matsu kept his eyes closed, waiting for the impact. He knew the captain, he knew that pompous ass was cruel enough to taunt him before the actual blows.

But… He heard nothing.

No lashing of the whip, no screams in the crowd, not even the laugh of the captain.

Well, at first.

"Y… You _dare!?_ "

Ever so slowly, Matsu opened his eyes, and was greeted with a sight he… Honestly did not expect. Just in front of him, with two whips wrapped tightly around his wrists, was his savior. He was tall, and well-built… And that was all he could tell. The big cloak covering him didn't leave much to sight. He _did_ notice something on his arms… Looked like scars?

Wait, focus, Goto was talking, pay attention to that. Could help a lot in getting away.

"Who are you?! How dare you stand against the might of Justice?!" screamed the Marine, tugging against the whips wrapped around the stranger's arms.

"I dunno, might be because you were about to whip a kid?" snarked back the man, his fists clenched tightly as the leather dug onto the cloth.

"He disrespected the Navy! He who humiliates the Marines will be punished for their sins!"

"Maybe if you put on a better show you wouldn't have tomatoes tossed at you, it's basic knowledge…"

"You BRAT! You would badmouth that which brings you safety!"

Matsu could have been a bit shaky from being tossed on the floor, but he swore he saw the air around the man flutter lightly at those words. Goto, however, kept on going.

"Still… Kokoko… You're strong, I can tell. Not all can resist the strength of my arms. I can bench-press four hundred pounds after all!" he scoffed, the muscles on his arms bulging out ever-so-slightly with that statement. "Yes, that is the strength that I wield as a Marine!"

"God you ever thought about joining a band, tooting your horn like that…" muttered the man under his breath, just low enough that Matsu barely heard it.

"So! I make an offer to you, you wayward soul!". Goto slammed his foot down somewhere beneath him, and two metal claws unfolded from under the platform the marine stood on. Both clamped down on the whip handles tightly and pulled them taut. Goto grinned wide, jumping down onto the floor and walking over to the stranger. Around him, grunts carefully aimed their rifles forward, the robot soldiers watching impassively with their arms by their side. The captain walked 'till he was just in front of the man and puffed out his chest. "Bend your knee to this all mighty army, and to my authority… And I will forgive your sins. Hell, I'll even throw in an extra mercy and allow you to join the Navy! After all, strength like yours should not be wasted! Now… Say those words~"

It was like lightning raced over all those present, Matsu especially. They had seen this happen before, oh so many times. A cocky pirate or gutsy fighter would show up, try to fight the captain, and be defeated soundly. He'd offer them to join, they'd refuse, he'd beat them further and toss them onto a prison ship and sent off to be judged far away. It was how always was… And now stood this man in the same spot.

Matsu watched in fear, seeing the man's arms lose their strain, his shoulders sagging ever-so-slightly and head lowered… And then he heard something muttered.

"… No…"

"Hm? I couldn't hear you, boy… Speak louder~" cooed Goto, leaning over right next to the man's face and cupping his ear with one hand. "What was your answer again?"

"… I said. No."

_WHAM_

A knee shot upwards and slammed against Goto's chin, a resounding and sickening _crack_ ringing out in the air. The captain was catapulted back, launched into the air and falling back onto his tank. The move, however, served to dislodge the cape from his body, allowing the crowds and Matsu to see him in full.

He was big. Not like captain Goto, he looked far more proportioned. But he was tall, maybe some six feet something, with a wild mane of black hair falling to the middle of his back. His skin was fair, contrasting heavily with his bright golden eyes. An old, ragged blue vest wrapped around his torso and the yellow tank top he wore, and a pair of cloud-patterned gi pants covered his legs, held up by a tattered piece of rope with red highlights on each end. And to complete the ensemble, heavy-looking wooden sandals on his feet.

"Y… Y-Y-You…"

Matsu turned his face toward the tank, and saw a large hand grasp the edge of the podium, hoisting up a battered and bruised Goto from it. The boy had to stifle a laugh when he caught sight of the captain's ugly mug looking even worse now with the bruise and a few missing teeth. The gathered Marines watched in shock and horror as their officer glared daggers at the stranger.

"Y-Y-Y-You… You…!"

"Hey, it's me. How ya doing there, big guy?"

"I KNOW WHO YOU ARE, YOU BRAT!" bellowed Goto, crushing the steel railing beneath his fingers. "YES, I'VE HEARD THE RUMORS! YOU… YOU'RE THE ROAMING HERMIT, FULLBRING SAGA!" Gasps escaped from the crowd as heads turned all around, the people muttering to each other.

"Wait, that's the Hermit?!"

"Why is he here?!"

"How did he even get in the island?!"

"ALL TROOPS! YOU HAVE YOUR ORDERS! CAPTURE HIM!". And with that, a wave of blue-and-white surged forward towards him. Matsu felt a hand upon his collar drag him back to the crowd, a young couple bracing around him away from the fight. They watched as the soldiers rushed against his savior… Yet Matsu squirmed in their grasp, and even though he was deafened by the shouts…

"MR SAGA, RUN!"

He screamed.

**-O-**

Breathe… In… And out… Just remember your training...

Breathe _…_

I tuned out the sounds of the Marines running towards me… The crowd yelling… The ugly laugh of the captain I tried fixing the face of…

Just… Breathe _._

In…

"Rising Dragon Impact Fist…"

_OUT._

" _Strong Iron Wave!_ "

I thrust my closed hand down, a wave of wind, solid and thick, blasted out around me. It exploded outwards, smashing Marines aside and tossing them back, flying out onto the crowd or robots still marching forward. Shouting mixed with clanging of metal rang on the air…

No time to focus on that. I dashed forward just as a hail of bullets peppered the ground I was standing and continued to chase after me as I ran. I pulled closer onto one of the bigger robots, just as it swung its arms to hit me.

Too slow.

" _Steel Hard Gauntlet!_ "

I thrust my fist forward, smashing against the chest plate of the robot. Powerful shockwaves made the metal rattle and groan until it finally, the entire upper half exploded, tearing through the machine like it was made of plastic. Another one swung its arm downwards aiming for my head, only to meet my forearm half-way down. The gun arm clanged back and reared, giving me just the opening to kick the machine in the legs, blasting them off and dropping the torso to the ground. A stomp to the head finished it off.

"Two down, hundreds to go" I growled out, before a few bullets flew over my head and got me back onto the game. Another stomp to the ground lifted a large boulder upwards, shielding me from the gunfire…

_BOOM_

That is, before I was reminded that the robots weren't the only guns around, when one of the vehicles blasted the rock apart with its cannon. Pieces of stone flew out and pelted my body as I flew back and skidded across the floor and smashed against another vehicle.

Ow.

"DO NOT LET HIM GET AWAY, SEIZE HIM!" bellowed the voice of the captain from somewhere. Footsteps boomed near me, the telltale sign of approaching Marines. That won't do.

I pushed up with my legs and turned to look at the vehicle I crashed on. A big metal dent had caved its side in, and smoke was billowing from the engine block.

It also seemed to not have people inside.

Perfect.

I dug my hands onto it, grasping the metal plating tightly. The second I started hoisting it up, the plating groaned and shifted under my fingers. God, this is shoddy craftsmanship…

Oh, the face of the Marines when I turned around to face them were AMAZING.

"Shipping on time for everybody! Here's your package!"

They all seemed ready to run, they _really_ did. In hindsight, they probably should have.

Instead, the armored truck flew straight towards them, smashing on the ground just in front of them. Couldn't give them a reason to add "Marine killer" to my future bounty after all. Said Marines flew back from the impact, scattering bodies and weapons in equal measure as machine soldiers marched ever staunchly forward.

Time to bolt!

One mighty push onto the ground, and I was dashing away from the place in a blur, barely glimpsing the blur of people around as I made a break away from the town. If memory served me well, if I kept going this way I'd hit the west edge of the town leading straight towards the forest. Army of the future or not, they couldn't chase me that well on the thick foliage. Even as their noise and the shouting of the mad captain died down on the distance, I couldn't help myself but chuckle.

God, it felt good to finally put all those years of training to use…

Now I just had to live enough to find my first crewmate here. Easy peasy. For now, running.

Later, though… I had an engineer to find.


	3. Chapter 3

_Somewhere in the woods…_

The woods were fairly quiet. Bar the chirping of birds, some ruffling leaves and grass from a few animals, it was peaceful.

Except for me of course.

_Grooooooooooooowl…_

And my unfortunately empty stomach.

In hindsight, I probably should have waited to piss off the Marines _after_ I had managed to get myself something to eat. That would have been just fine.

"Dammit… Probably should go back to the ship…" I mused out-loud, resting a hand over my abdomen. "Could grab some of the food there… Nah, scratch that. That guy Goto would probably follow me to it and try to bomb it to hell… Aaaaahhh, dammit, why's this shit so complicated!"

I rapped my fists against my head in frustration, before flopping back against the trunk of the tree I stopped to rest at. This was taking too long…

If the dates were about right, Luffy had already left Dawn Island and probably met at least Zoro by now. Might have even reached Buggy by now. Which meant I had to pick up the pace. Build up my crew fast, repair the ship, gather supplies…

Why did sailing have to be so complex…

_Groooooooooooowl…_

"SHUT UP, DAMMIT!"

"Huh, didn't think you'd be such a weirdo."

The slightly mocking voice piped up just off to my side, from inside a rustling bush. Just as I pushed myself to my feet, however, my worries went away as the figure inside it came out: it was the boy I had rescued in the town.

"I think you looked cooler punching the robots and doing martial arts," he quipped before throwing me a small bag. It fell right in front of my feet, and a peek showed it was filled with—

"Oh my God thanks kid," I barely stammered out, reaching onto the bag and pulling from the various sandwiches and pieces of meat inside to shovel them onto my mouth. Honestly, I'd probably have focused more on manners if it wasn't for the fact I was practically starving here. "You're a life saver."

The boy chuckled, pulling an apple from his pocket and taking a bite from it. "Funny you're calling me that, when you're the reason I didn't get whipped to a pulp."

"Well, maybe you shouldn't have gone and thrown tomatoes and the megalomaniacal Marine captain with an army of robots."

"Goto deserved it though," he spat out venomously, his brow scrunched in anger. "He's the worst… Always stirring up trouble when the commodore isn't around. And now he's got all those weird machines."

"Yeah, someone in the crowd said he didn't have those before. Any idea where he got those?"

"No one knows for sure…" answered the boy, now somewhat sullen. "One day he just kept yelling and ranting about having found 'the true path for Marine dominance' or something like that… But he never actually said what it was or how he got it…"

I took a moment to rest a hand on his shoulder, giving the kid a reassuring pat. "It's alright, Matsu. I'll try to do something about it." That got his attention, the boy staring at me with wide eyes. "Truth be told, I have my own reasons to be here in the island."

"You do…? But why? You saw what happened when you went to save me, they'll kill you! As long as they know you're in the island, they won't leave you alone!" he cried out, hands tightening into fists. I took a moment to stare at him, when a chuckle escaped my lips. Carefully, I slid off my vest and took off my tank top, letting it hang from my forearms and baring my chest to him. Matsu peered at it and let a gasp escape his lips as he caught sight of the scars upon it.

The _many_ scars.

"Trust me, buddy… I can take it." I didn't know if he caught my voice getting lower…

I hope he didn't.

"Now, you said no one knows for _sure,_ " I added, slipping my clothes back on. "But that also means you have _some_ idea of it. What did you hear?"

"Well… A few days ago, a couple of Marine ships docked. Weird ones too, they had a different symbol on their flags. And Captain Goto made sure nobody could get close to them."

Bingo.

"And nobody found it suspicious?"

"But it was such a short time ago, how did he build an army like that so fast?!"

"Maybe he shipped the army itself in the ships?" I queried, propping my chin on my hand, but the boy simply shook his head.

"No, they were pretty small ships. A bunch of sloops and a caravel, not nearly enough for… All of that." The boy looked back in the direction where the town was, before turning back to me… And shivered as he caught my massive grin. "U-Umm… Mister?"

"Well, you just confirmed my suspicions. They're here," I spoke with quite some joy in my voice. "Glad the rumors weren't wrong."

"They? Who's they?"

"The person I'm looking for in this island… And my future engineer," I replied as I stood up and cracked my knuckles. "Say, where's the Marine garrison?" Matsu's eyes widened at that remark, however, and shook his head desperately.

"Uh-uh! No way, you're not going there by yourself! You'll end up sinking this entire island with the way you do things!" he cried out, arms crossed in front of him.

"Look, I need to find that engineer, whoever they are! Don't you want to get rid of Goto and his tin cans?"

"Yeah, but not if we end up with a flat nothing to live on!" he shouted back, motioning to the trees all around us. And as much as I hated to admit… He did have a point. Just going there and kicking the metaphorical door down would lead to an early bounty, a fight I'm _almost_ sure I could win easily but would ruin the town, and some angry Marines chasing me down like an animal. Too risky… That's when the boy grew a playful smile upon his face. "But… I _could_ sneak you into the place."

… What?

"… Come again?"

His smile only grew wider, arms crossed and a playful look in his eyes. "Oh, come on, you really think a little trickster like me doesn't know how to get into their home? Please, that's insulting." He reached onto a pocket in his pants, pulling out a carefully folded paper out of it. "This here is a map of the place. I know every nook and cranny… And every way of getting in without being seen."

I looked at the paper expectantly, carefully reaching out for it, but Matsu simply yanked it away from my reach. "And let me guess… You won't give it to me, unless I bring you over?"

"That's right mister~"

"… You little son of a bitch, I'm in."

**-O-**

_Around the same time, Marine Base of the 56th Branch…_

"DAMN THAT BRAT! WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON HIM I'LL—"

"Captain please, calm down! Your injuries are—"

"I AM NOT INJURED YOU MONGREL, IT'LL TAKE MORE THAN THAT TO HURT ME!"

To say the mood on the Marine garrison was tense would be… An understatement of colossal proportions. None of the soldiers had ever seen their captain so angry before, even during his most stressful times when his pet project had started hitting some hiccups. But now…

"Damn the Hermit…" growled out the captain as he tugged the bandages around his head even tighter. "How dare he humiliate me! ME! And my great creations, just like they were nothing! All the time and effort spent on building them, and they are made like toys in front of the townspeople! GRAAAGH!"

Goto had never felt such fury before. And the target of it was the damn idiot who dared to stand against him. But it would not stand, not at all…

He had heard the rumors surrounding the Roaming Hermit. A young man of incredible strength, sailing alone and who had been circling the West Blue for some time now. He did not have a bounty, no, since he hadn't been classified as a pirate or even a criminal and hadn't committed any illegal activities until today. But he was a person of interest for one reason. One singular reason…

"Have you found his ship already?!" bellowed the captain, turning to face the terrified recruits tailing him. Sycophants, all of them!

"N-Not yet captain!" whimpered one of them, a brown-haired boy closest to him. "W-We are still looking for it, but rest assured, we will—"

"WILL WHAT?! STUTTER AND BE AFRAID?! ALL OF YOU ARE A PATHETIC EXCUSE OF MARINES! WE HAVE A THREAT TO THE SANCTITY AND DOMINION OF THIS ISLAND, AND ALL YOU DO IS SPEAK! FIND ME THAT SHIP, OR I WILL PERSONALLY—"

"CAPTAIN!"

His apoplectic tirade against the terrified soldiers was mercifully cut short when yet another recruit rushed in. The sweat-drenched Marine tossed his backpack aside and threw himself onto the floor gasping for breath, head lowered and eyes closed.

"C-Captain Goto, I… I have a… Report!"

"Then speak it already, dammit! Do not waste my time and patience any further!" bellowed Goto, though by this point the surrounding area had probably gone deaf enough it sounded normal. The exhausted Marine took a few more precious breaths, before shakily raising to his feet, arm snapped into a weak salute.

"The… The scouts have returned from their… Search missions, sir!"

"And?! What did they find, speak already!"

"W-We were unable to find the suspect sir…" He would have continued, but once more the air in his lungs was insufficient. And that pause was just enough for all the others to realize the aura of _sheer murder_ emanating for the trembling giant that was Goto. His eyes shadowed, he reached ever so slowly to his whips, his fingers twitching all the while. "But… We did discover something else, sir!"

Thankfully, that seemed to give pause to Goto's impending, though only by the flimsiest of threads going by the way the captain still started to strangle the handles of his weapon. "Speak."

"We've located… the suspect's ship!"

And with those words, the captain's anger was dispelled. His entire body locked up, hands still clasped around his weapons. The marines around him watched both expectantly and terrified at their commanding officer, even the recent arrival. Then…

"… Kokokoko… Kokokokoko! KOKOKOKOKOKOKOKO! _KOKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKO!_ "

He laughed. He laughed out loud, boastful, the same way he did when his metallic army had been completed. His arms spread out, back arched so much he faced the ceiling, his entire form shaking with sheer glee, Captain Nakoto Goto could only be happier if he had been made Admiral of the Fleets, or even a Five Elder Star.

"AH, YES! WHY WORRY ABOUT A WORTHLESS BRAT, WHEN THE TOOL FOR MY VICTORY IS WITHIN REACH! TO HELL WITH THE HERMIT, THERE ARE GREATER PRIZES FOR US TO FIND!" The captain turned to the recruit, pulling the young man forward and staring at him with crazed wide eyes. "TELL ME THEN, NOW, WHERE WAS THE SHIP?!" The recruit stared fearfully at his CO's unhinged face, and gulped down the massive lump forming on his throat.

"I-I-It… It was on the no-northern shore, captain!"

"THEN TO THE NORTHERN SHORE WE GO! RALLY OUR TROOPS, WE WILL SEIZE THE DRAGON'S SHIP FOR THE GLORY OF THE NAVY!"

"B-But the captain, the Hermit—"

_SNAP_

"Argh!"

The soldier that had made the mistake of trying to dissuade their current leader found himself lashed across the chest, a deep bloodied gash across his torso and staining his perfectly white shirt.

"Let it be clear, you INSOLENT CUR!" growled the captain as he reeled back the whip onto his hands. "It matters not what the WHELP does if we possess his method of travel, and if we can destroy it! He doesn't know of our wish to keep it intact, nor to not hand it over! The Hermit will be ignored, and we WILL focus solely on his ship, _is that UNDERSTOOD?_ "

"S-SIR, YES SIR!" came the terrified reply from the remaining recruits as they snapped into supremely stiff salutes, even as some carried away their wounded comrade away. Goto let his gaze run over the gathered soldiers, before whipping around in a dramatic fashion.

"LET US GO! OUR PRIZE AWAITS!"

**-O-**

_Some hours later…_

"So that's the place?"

"Yep."

"And you know the good way in?"

"Uh-huh."

"It seems a bit empty."

"It seems like it, doesn't it?"

"What's with the décor?"

"Beats me."

"You're not giving me anything useful you know."

"Maybe you should stop asking things and go inside already."

"Uuuugh…"

In hindsight, I was regretting this already. Somewhat. Mostly.

Well, Matsu _did_ get me to the point he promised me, that being the easiest place to enter the garrison.

Didn't change how _weird_ it looked.

I mean, I still remembered how most Marine bases were very weird, like Nedzu's having a rat head atop it, or G-5 looking like it was patched up with spit, tape and prayers. Hell, Marineford was still kinda weird, in a supremely cool way.

But none looked quite as weird as the 56th Branch that stood before me.

It's like someone had grabbed a bag of gears and slapped them onto a building. Seriously, it was just three cylinders with gears coming out from the sides all over, numbered 1 through 3, and a few rectangular buildings surrounding them. The rest looked fairly standard, there were training grounds for the troops, warehouses for which I assumed were their guns and new toys, a chain fence all around with barbed wire atop it, watchtowers… Standard stuff.

How did Matsu get in here again?

Better ask.

"So, how exactly _are_ we getting in?" I pipped up, glancing towards the boy laying prone on the ground next to me. It had been some ten minutes already of nothing but staring, jeez.

"Hang on, just let me check one last time…" he muttered under his breath, eyeing somewhere I couldn't really tell exactly where, before giving me a thumbs-up. "Alright, coast's clear, follow me." He then proceeded to rush ahead, with no cover to hide behind or a general plan.

Okey dokey.

I rushed after him as quickly and as silently as I could, keeping my body low to the ground as physically possible considering our surroundings. Not two minutes of silent running later (in which I swear I saw him Naruto-run, and I _hope_ he didn't for his own sake), we reached a particular part of the fence. For me, it seemed like a normal piece of the fence like all the rest.

And then Matsu, still with the biggest grin ever, lightly pushed on a part of the metal and it—Oh son of a bitch.

"Seriously, that's it?" I asked bewildered, even as I stared at the _entrance_ , metal bent inwards as Matsu pushed it inside. "A cut part of the fence? THAT'S the big secret?"

"Hey, give me some credit!" he sniped back as he crawled through the hole. "You know how long it took me to find out this is the ONE place they never check? Quite a long time!"

"Oh yeah, and how did you find that tidbit out?"

"I dropped a bag of poo here when I saw the troops walking past it, and they never bothered to check for it. Smell was nasty after a while, and Goto kept blaming the recruits for not washing themselves properly."

"… That is one of the stupidest things I've ever heard in my life… Whatever, let's go in," I added, quickly sliding myself through. We took a moment to look around, and failing to spot any incoming guards, ran towards one of the three cylindrical buildings, specifically number 2. The silent dash was not that long, and soon Matsu led me to a small door to the side, conspicuously facing away from the side facing the road leading towards the village. Oh yeah, real subtle stuff. Yet when he fiddled with the knob, the door did not budge.

"Dammit, _today_ they lock the door?" he muttered, pulling on the knob a bit harder, to no avail. "Oh come on, this ain't fair—"

"Allow me." I moved the boy to the side, gripped the knob and gently pushed it.

The door basically exploded inwards from the force, the hinges twisting on themselves into uselessness and leaving the large piece of wood hanging from my grip on the knob.

"There we go," I said with no little amount of satisfaction as I propped the now broken door against the wall and stepped into the now open hallway. "Now its unlocked." All Matsu did in response to that was roll his eyes and step forward.

"You're as subtle as a cannonball."

"And just as effective for this kind of stuff. So, where to now?"

"Uuuugh… This way, come on."

Pacing the corridors was surprisingly not difficult. No alarms of any kind, no cameras, the lighting was good… Hell, there wasn't even any sentries or guards—

Scratch that, there was one.

I managed to hold Matsu in place right before the turn, just as I heard the sound of his boots striking the floor. I peered around the corner just to be safe, and lo and behold there he was, one of the most generic Marine grunts I had ever seen, luckily facing away from us with his rifle resting against his shoulder. I turned back to Matsu, and gave him a quick pat to the shoulder before giving him a "wait" sign, getting a nod in response. I checked the corner once more, and fortunately the guard was still facing away from us. Go time.

With a single bound, I dashed forward towards the Marine and swept my leg against his feet and threw him off-balance. My arm wrapped around his neck in a chokehold, with the free one resting against his back.

"Let's take this easy, shall we buddy?"

In hindsight, I probably could have made a better one-liner than that. I didn't think much of it at the time, however, since Matsu just casually strolled up and stood in front of the immobilized soldier.

"Oh, hey there August, how are things going?" he asked nonchalantly, hands on his hips.

"Hello there, Matsu," he replied in an equal tone, slightly glancing back to face me. "Still getting in with the wrong crowd, I see."

"Eh, he's nice. Just a bit thick headed."

"I can see that."

"Still, that was a pretty cool trick he pulled huh?"

"You know, you two could acknowledge the fact I'm right here," I added dryly, letting go of the soldier and taking a step back. The man ran a hand over the creases of his shirt, and calmly placed his rifle down on the floor. "So I take it you're not a big fan of the captain, either?"

"That's putting it lightly. Most people here are terrified of him, but they keep quiet because he can be… _Overeager_ when it comes to corporal punishment. At least when the commodore's not around."

"And any idea when this commodore's coming back?"

"Well… Here's the thing. He should have already been back."

"What?"

"Yeah, the commodore normally only stays away for a few weeks at a time," said Matsu, hands in his pockets. "But… It's been three months already."

Oh, that can't be good…

"Nevertheless, if you're here to try and beat him up, you're a bit too late. And I suggest you get to running," said the Marine, arms crossed and with a very serious look on his face.

"And why's that? You're not gonna try to arrest me, are you?" I asked, my hands twitching minutely beside me, but August simply shook his head.

"I don't need to. If you don't hurry up, you'll probably be stuck in this island for some time."

"… Say what?"

"Do you know why this base is so empty of troops right now?"

"Yeah, what's up with that, August?" asked Matsu, giving a glance out a window into the courtyard. "Isn't this supposed to be training time? Where's everybody?" The soldier gave the boy a calm look, before turning back towards me. His face did not make me confident.

"We got orders from the captain back a few hours ago. He gathered up every soldier he could take bar a skeleton crew, and went off to destroy a priority target found at the northern part of the island."

… Oh.

So that was it.

"The northern part?" asked Matsu. "But there's nothing there, its just jungle and rocks! What did you guys find?"

"My ship."

I uttered those words just loud enough that I ended up heard by the only other two people in the hallway. Both turned towards me, seeing me looking out the window with a stone-cold look on my face.

"They're heading after my ship."

"Correct. So unless you want to be stranded here or lose your vessel, I suggest you—"

"No."

"What?! Saga, your ship is in danger! You gotta get back to it and help—"

"No," I said quickly enough, and in that moment a smile spread upon my face. "I left my ship in good hands. If Goto wants to try and take it… Well, he's welcome to try. Right now, the engineer is the priority. And speaking of that…" I turned to face August, arms crossed and gazing him directly in the eyes. "Would you know where he or she is?".

The Marine rested a hand on his chin, eyes closed in thought. "… Say that I know that information. What do you plan on doing with it?"

"I want to have them join my crew. Been in need of someone with that skillset, and so far this has been the best lead so far. And hey, a plus would be Goto loses access to his fancy tin army," I said with a cheeky grin. "So you guys stop having him scream and rant all around the place about it, and maybe get your regular jobs back?"

August didn't reply at first, instead scrutinizing me from top to bottom. And dear lord, for a grunt-level soldier the look he was giving me didn't look that different from what I presumed Smoker's to be like. He held it for quite some time, before letting out an exaggerated sigh.

"Very well then, listen closely."

Score.

"A few days ago, Goto had us on high alert. Told us a high-priority package was coming, and that we had to make absolutely sure no one got in the way of the delivery. We noticed he had been quite antsy ever since the commodore left the island, but never as bad as that day. He even slapped around one of the recruits that asked what was in the package. Pick-up was the same, no questions asked and it traveled inside a sealed car all the way here. Next thing we know, yesterday he starts saying he has an invincible army that would be a game changer for the Navy." He pointed towards one of the buildings further towards the back of the base, one that looked somewhat cleaner than the others. "As far as I know, the package was sent to Building 4, but nothing more than that."

"Alright… That's good enough for now. Thank you, August… And umm, sorry for putting you on a chokehold."

"Eh, the captain's done worse. It's fine."

"… Noted. Alright, take Matsu and get out of here, I'll go to the building."

"What?! No way, I came all this way, I'm staying!" yelled the boy, yet again crossing his arms in front of his chest. Only this time, I knelt down to his level, and placed a hand on his shoulder, giving the calmest and worried look I could muster.

"Matsu, if you stay here, and they get wind that you helped me, it'll be the Marines and Navy after you, not just the captain. What I'm about to do will probably land me a bounty, and I don't want you to get tangled with it."

"But… But I…"

"No buts this time, Matsu," I said low, before letting a smile spread across my face. "Someone's gotta keep this place lively after I leave." He stared at me for a couple of moments before dropping his gaze, arms slumping down by his side in defeat.

"Fine…" he admitted in defeat, before quickly leveling a glare at me and clenched fists. "But if you cause any trouble, I'll make sure you regret it, you hear me!"

"Wouldn't have it any other way, Matsu." I then turned towards the Marine standing to the side, him having just retrieved his rifle from against the wall it had been placed. "I'm trusting his safety to you. Get him outta here safely," With a nod towards August, I stood up and ran down the hallway, leaving behind the boy and soldier as they rushed back towards where the two of us had come from.

As it turns out, August was right. As I dashed down the hallways, I came across only three other soldiers patrolling the entirety of the base. Only this time, I made sure to not try any one-liners or stealth takedowns. Leave that to the professionals, just pass them by when their backs were turned and make no noise. Simple, effective, and guaranteed to at least somewhat cushion the blow of the possible bounty.

Yeah, right.

With how things were going, I wouldn't be surprised if the commodore dropped back by just as I was getting away.

I quickly noted the sign marking the following area as "Building 4", a heavy steel door blocking my path and covered in "DO NOT ENTER" and "TRESPASSING PUNISHABLE BY DEATH" signs on it.

Smooth, Goto.

I dug my hands onto the thin line separating both halves of the door and heaved, feeling the metal and whatever mechanism kept it shut. I felt the muscles in my arms strain, but with just a bit of effort the doors gave way, parting just enough to let me through and allowing me to close them back up with only a very dry-sounding _clank_ to give me away. With that done, I turned back to the path that I had just oh-so-graciously opened, and gazed upon the hallway ahead of me.

… Nothing.

Now, I don't mean in the general sense that it had very little to see upon it, or that it was very minimalistic. I mean in the sense of, there was _nothing_ in it. No lights, no windows, no security…

Just a long tunnel enveloped in pure darkness, and what I hoped was an easy stretch to my goal. Hopefully.

"… Alright… You can do this, easy steps… One at a time…" I muttered under my breath, slowly pacing forward and keeping a hand to the walls. I could feel their texture, completely smooth to the touch. Not even a rivet to show where it had been welded. All featureless, just like the darkness around it. Yet I could tell, there had to be something at the end of this, there simply had to—

One close call saw me step on empty air where I expected floor to be. I knelt down and reached out on the empty space and with a little more prodding, found myself a step for a set of stairs. Ever so slowly, I climbed down the stairs, the darkness just as oppressive here as it had been the entire way. It was… Pretty unnerving, all things considered.

Thankfully, it seemed to come to an end not long after. Some five minutes of nothing but walking and going down the stairs like a character in an unfinished horror game, I found myself staring at a small square room with very weak green neon lights surrounding it and mate black walls, giving it a very ghostly look. Yet still, nothing. There were no lines on the walls, no obvious marks… Even as I walked around and knocked on them, I couldn't hear any sound of echoes. But why would they have this entire place? An entire building with nothing on it, no lighting or people, yet being called the source of the machine army for the garrison which was under alternate management…

…

Was this a trap? Had I been tricked? Was August just pretending to be friendly and had lied about the engineer being here? And I left Matsu with him, what if he—

"No, focus!" I ended up saying aloud, rapping my fists against my head. "It can't be this, it'd make no sense! Why would they let me in this far just for nothing?!"

_"It really wouldn't, would it?"_

The distorted, mechanical voice immediately put me on high alert, my body instinctively shifting to a martial stance as I desperately checked my surroundings, yet I could see nothing. The walls were still the smooth black I had seen them as when I entered. Where was it coming from?

"And I suppose you'd know what this is… Whomever you are?" I asked cautiously, my head in a swivel as I tried to catch any clue to the origin of the voice.

_"Well of course. I built this place, after all… Well, this room and this building more precisely, but that's besides the point."_

"And the point exactly would be…?"

" _Oh, right, I should probably get to that. One moment please…_ " I meant to question what exactly the voice meant, when the entire room suddenly shook, and I heard the soft whirl of a motor around me. " _There we go, probably should have done that before._ "

"Is… The room moving?"

" _Yes it is. Took me a day to set it up but was it worth it. At least I could just ship Goto back to the hallway any time he got too mouthy or too douchey to me. Oh, the look on his face was the BEST. One moment, you're almost there…_ "

Just as he said those words, the room once more lurched forward as another sound rang, this time of what I assumed to be security clamps, followed by the entire wall sliding down onto the floor. Just ahead of me was… Quite a room.

While the hallway I had walked into had been nothing but darkness, and the room I just had been was just spooky green light, this one was teeming with all kinds of cabinets, crates and tools. Pieces and half-assembled robots and machines were strewn across the floor and tables, some with tools still stuck to them and others hanging from the ceiling from chains and claws like a butcher's shop. Further into the back, I could see a large swivel chair facing away from me, and a huge console with an assortment of buttons and dials I did not know the function of nor could guess, and dozens of monitors showing several different parts of the base, such as the surroundings of the fences, the outside area of the base, even the…

…

Aaaahhhh, _fuck_.

"Oh yeah, if I had actually wanted to tattle on you, I would have rung that alarm while you were outside with the kid. But then again, it would have been rude to shoo you away like that," said a very youthful and cheerful voice in the direction of the panel, before the chair spun around and revealed a little hypocrite talking about Matsu.

He looked pretty young, barely up to his sixteens if I had to make a guess, with a somewhat pale tone. His short red spiky hair stood mostly up, with a short bang covering his left eye, the rest folded back by a pair of square goggles upon his head and leaving his other, green-colored eye uncovered. He wore a sleeveless lab coat over a black shirt with a chemical model written on it, probably of some important element, and dark blue cargo pants with red and yellow sneakers for footwear. His hands were covered by fingerless gloves, and his left wrist was covered by a strange metal bracelet.

Also he had the biggest shit-eating grin I had ever seen in my life.

"Well, it's nice to finally meet ya, Roaming Hermit," he said, crossing one leg over the other and pulling a chocolate bar from a pocket in his coat. "So, happy to meet who you've been looking for all this time?" I gave a knowing smile and walked forward just enough that I was just in front of the boy, arms crossed and slightly tilted backwards.

"It sure is. Glad to know you really were on the island, engineer."

"Please. Call me Gears. We got some things to talk about don't we?"

"Indeed we do…"


	4. Chapter 4

"… Hey August."

"Yes Matsu?"

"I forgot to tell you something, actually."

"Hm? And what would that be?"

"This."

"… ?!"

"Sorry about this, August… I hate using your own sleep bomb against you… But I don't want you getting involved in this whole thing. Whatever that Saga guy is gonna do, he needs time…And I won't let Goto get away with this."

**-O-**

"I bet you're wondering why I brought you here, aren't you?"

"I mean yeah, considering you kidnapped me into your lab."

"… That's pretty rude way to put it, you know?"

"Alright, then, why did you bring me here?" I asked, arms crossed as I tried my best to look indifferent and/or menacing to the apparent boy genius sitting in front of me.

I just hoped the crossed arms didn't look like Gedatsu's right now, that'd be embarrassing.

It didn't seem to work regardless, considering the way Gears continued to stare at me with an unamused expression, before shrugging and hopping off his chair. "Well, might as well get to business," he droned, moving to one of the consoles upon the wall. With amazing reflexes, he typed down a few commands on the keyboard, and suddenly all the screens began showing various places all over the island. We could see the town, some parts of the woods surrounding it, even the docks where all the ships were.

And all around, were Goto's robot troops.

They searched the entire town, entering shops and homes uncaring of the people inside, questioning the citizens and rounding them up into buildings. The cars and tanks from before roared past in the streets, smashing stone pavement and any cart of possession in their way. A few Marines oversaw everything, showing to the corralled people vague sketches of myself, and of a crude drawing of something red and long…

"… Is that… My ship?" I asked, arms dropping to my sides once more.

"Yup. Turns out, big ol' Goto decided to play nasty. He already went for your ship, and decided to warn everybody else that aiding you is punishable by imprisonment," replied the young engineer, turning to face me with a now far more serious look. "I mean, good job saving that kid, we all know Goto would have hung him from his ankles or something messed up, but now he went after you and your way out."

"I'm not worried about my ship," I replied quickly, my eyes still glued to the screens. "Goto will never be able to blow it up, let alone get close."

"You sure seem confident… Got any more friends I should know about?"

"You… Could say that."

Gears gave me a long stare, before shrugging and hitting another button on the keyboard, shutting off all the screens. "Welp, your funeral. So, you mentioned wanting to meet me, right?" he finished, sitting back down on his chair and pointing to another just off to the side. I pulled it up and sat down, and boy was the chair small. How it held me up was a miracle of its own.

"That's right. I wanted to give you a job offer with me," I replied, sitting as casually as I could on the dinky chair offered to me. Legs spread, arms crossed, slightly slouching back…

Did I look good?

I probably did.

Gears gave me a once over, and judging by the look, it probably wasn't working. "Uh-huh".

Definitely not working.

"Alright, I'm going straight to the point. My ship needs repairs and someone who can take care of it. And as far as I've heard, you're the best damn engineer in the Blues and probably in the Grand Line."

Bar one or two exceptions, but he didn't know about Franky. Let's not get into that.

"Well, you definitely heard that right," he replied with a smirk, rubbing his finger under his nose. "Ain't nothing I can't fix or make, and I think I proved my point by… Well, you know," he said somewhat sheepishly, waving at the screens.

I turned to look at them, before turning to give him a halfway menacing glare. "Yeah, I was gonna ask… What's with the army of the dented out there? You really helping the Marines oppress folks, or just helping Goto specifically?"

Boy, were those the wrong words to speak. As soon as I finished speaking, Gears gave me a glare I did not expect a sixteen-year-old to be capable of having. Especially with one eye hidden.

"You better rethink what you just said there, mister hermit. Or we're gonna have this discussion somewhere more… Public."

"Well then, enlighten me. Because right now I'm seeing an army of very well-built tin cans stomping around the town and only one person who could have built them," I shot back, leaning forward in my chair. "And you don't look very… Coerced into it." Gears continued glaring at me, before letting out a heavy sight and slumping on his seat, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Alright… From the top then, I guess."

"I'm all ears, Jimmy Neutron."

"What even is that…" he muttered, before shaking his head. "Alright, listen: Yes, I'm not being coerced by the Marines to stay… But I have a much better reason for it, and that's me building those things was the best option."

I took one glance at the screens again, just in time to see an armored car running over a girl's doll, before looking back at the engineer. "Uh-huh."

"I'm serious. Look, you had an easy time breaking them apart, right?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Do you honestly think I'd build something so shoddy and be satisfied with it? I built them far worse than my usual standards BECAUSE I want them beat."

… What?

My arms drooped slightly, and I'm pretty sure the confusion in my face was obvious, considering the smile Gears now had in his face. "Hold the phone, what are you talking about?"

The boy stood up and walked towards the computers, running one hand over the metal casings. "I came here because I thought it was under orders from Commodore Soku, so that I could help with things around the base, or something like that… Instead, I meet the bag of hot air himself and next thing I know, I'm being ordered to build him an army."

"Why didn't you leave, then? If you were here to offer help, then you could have just left, right?"

"No, I couldn't. Because now that I knew what he wanted, he could have slapped any kind of fake crimes on me and get me arrested…", he said calmly, before turning to face me in full, his entire expression now far more serious. "If I didn't do it, then someone with less restraint would have done it, and not sabotaged the whole thing in the end."

… It did make some sense, after all.

Dangit, now I was the asshole here.

"Alright, you've… Mostly proven your point. So, if I want you in, I got to get you off of Goto's greedy big hands?" I asked, getting up from my own chair. Gears looked at me for a moment, before chuckling and shaking his head.

"Interesting way of putting it, but… Yeah, that'd be about it. Though it depends on what you got to offer, of course," he replied, pulling a chocolate bar from his pockets and undoing the wrapping. "Because you and I both know, the moment we smack down Goto from his high tower, is the moment we get bounties. And I'd rather not end up a criminal," he finished, taking a large bite out of the candy.

"Think of it this way: you said you came here because you thought the Commodore had called, right?"

"Mhm," he replied, his mouth still stuffed.

"And you ALSO said that Goto never specified WHO called you up here, right? That he just ordered you to build those robots."

This actually seemed to give Gears pause, the boy slowly swallowing his chocolate as the (heh) gears turned inside his head. "… Riiiiight..."

I clapped my hands together, a smirk upon my face. "So, imagine if you had, say… A letter that just so _happened_ to have been written by our dear friend Captain Goto, claiming that you were called by the Commodore here." I walked closer and gave the boy a pat in the shoulder, before turning to look at the computers, pointing to the screens. "Wouldn't it be a shame?"

Gears stared at the screen, before an _evil_ grin spread across his face, and a twinkle of mischief started shining on his eye. "I'd say… That it really _would_ be a shame if I had something like that." He typed a few more keys in the console, and where once was live feed from the town, was now pictures of papers signed by, who else, Captain Goto. "And it'd be _such a shame_ if I just so _happened_ to have a way to make that letter, wouldn't you agree?"

Oh, was I set on getting him on my crew now. There was just one problem…

"Still, if we're going to fight Goto, we're gonna need a bit more help," I said in a more serious tone, arms crossed once more. "I'm all for a big fight, but still… two hundred to one isn't a ratio that'd make me very happy to jump in." Yet when I heard a scoff sound out from beside me, I knew I'd definitely like the reply to what I said.

"Please, as if I'd be caught dead unprepared like that," replied the boy genius, but instead of fiddling with the computer once more, he instead pulled a remote with a large red button on it from his pocket, pressing down on said button and then stuffing it back. With a loud clang, the floor once more sunk beneath my feet, lowering us in a platform onto another dark space beneath a pre-existing room.

I'd have to make sure he didn't dig my ship into the bottom of the ocean doing this.

Though my thoughts were quickly throw from that into… Other corners when a few flood lights turned on and illuminated the inside of what I now realized was a subterranean hangar.

With something very… _Conspicuous_ resting on the middle.

"So," piped up Gears, holding what was left of his chocolate bar between his teeth, a wide grin once again upon his face. "What you think of my back-up plan?"

"… I feel like we're gonna be _best of friends_ , buddy."

As if in reply, two yellow lights flashed to us.

**-O-**

Dammit.

Dammit, dammit, dammit!

DAMMIT ALL TO HELL AND FIRE!

Goto stewed in his fury and anger, enough that it could surely boil the water that covered him head to toe. The troops that accompanied him likewise were just as drenched, yet were smart enough to keep their mouths shut and keep walking.

Besides, they knew to say anything would welcome being lashed, perhaps several times over.

But that wasn't upon the captain's mind. No, he was too consumed with stewing his anger and reliving his latest failure.

The scout _had_ been right, and indeed the ship of that brat, Saga, had been moored on the northern shores. And of course, Goto lead his troops to destroy the wretched vessel and present its burning wreckage to that pretend pirate. Maybe even better, he could capture it and use it as the flagship of his soon-to-be-made fleet. He'd be unstoppable, invincible! Surely, Marine HQ would give him a promotion for bringing down all the scum of the seas in the Blues, maybe even in the Grand Line! Yes, what a victory it'd be!

But no! NO!

Instead, his attack was stopped by that… That _thing_!

Instead, his perfect army was being squandered in town interrogating people and looking for some runaway criminal, while his TRAINED MARINE TROOPS were laid waste by a single attacker!

Humiliating! Inconceivable! IMPOSSIBLE!

But no! He had to curb his rage for now!

Even if the troops under him were UTTERLY USELESS, he knew his army of machines would do the job. They would find that criminal, so-called "hermit", and he would force him to have that… That abomination laid down!

Yes… All would be solved!

And if it wasn't… Well, the boy was always a good scapegoat. He'd just claim the little kid built the army to try and attack the city, it wouldn't be too hard to prove what with all the broken machines.

The commodore would surely believe him, after all these years serving under him!

But not now! Now he needed to plan. He needed to make sure the pieces were in the right place.

"All of you, listen up!" bellowed Goto, quickly turning around to face the masses of defeated troopers behind him. Said troopers collided against one another, bodies slamming together in a massive effort to not hit the barely-controlled captain. Goto himself gave a scathing once-over, his hands inching towards his whips, but a quick clench of his fingers put a stop to that.

Embarassing, all of them.

"You are all aware of the machinations of the Roaming Hermit, Fullbring Saga! And you have witnessed the foul tricks he is willing to employ against the righteousness of the Marines!" ranted the captain, waving his arms in gestures he believed theatrical enough for this. "But we fear naught! We are the Marines! We serve the glorious military that brings Absolute Justice to all who try to harm the common folk of these Blues!"

"But I say NO TO THAT! WE WILL SHOW THE FULL POWER AND GLORY THAT THE MARINES CAN MUSTER!". The captain turned to the direction of the town, pointing an authoritarian finger towards it. "As we speak, our comrades are looking for the treacherous criminal, no doubt fully being supported by the common folk, and aided by the machines that will be our future! So now, my fellow men-at-arms, let us march upon these streets once more! Let us show the civilians that we can bring order upon them! Now, FORWARD MEN!"

And so, with the most minute of increase in morale, the column marched once more towards the town. Goto heard murmurs amidst the gathered Marines, all of them questioning the strength of his army, how much luck they would have considering their last battle, and exactly _how_ they could capture the criminal.

The captain's hands strangled the handles of his whips. It would seem some… Disciplinary action would be needed in fixing their morale and conduct.

It was not long until they walked into town, and what Goto saw brought a satisfied smile to his face. All throughout the streets, he saw his machine soldiers walking up and down, eyeing the now-gathered civilians lining the sidewalks. His vehicles rolled down slowly, their guns swiveling side-to-side scanning for any threats, all the while the few troops he deemed competent enough to lead _his_ army guided the mechanical troops throughout and showed posters for both the brat Saga and his ship. They were not official posters, sure, but nothing a call to HQ would not fix. Any made-up accusation would suffice, he just had to pull a few strings.

Goto puffed out his chest in pride, walking closer to the gathered civilians with a large, proudful smile. "Greetings once more, citizens of Nissus Island! I see that you all are cooperating with the authorities for the arrest of that vile criminal!" he shouted, waving his arm above the gathered crowd.

He looked down at the people, and strangely enough, he saw not looks of awe and admiration, but instead looks of disgust, disappointment… Anger.

Had that criminal scum corrupted them so much? Very well, a show of power, then.

"Very well then! I see that my message of glory and safety has not been emphasized enough. Allow me to reiterate then…". The captain snapped his fingers, and immediately one of the many tanks rolled forward, aiming its gun towards the forest. "Perhaps you all have been thinking that our glorious new tool of safekeeping are beneath their standard… Allow me to demonstrate otherwise… FIRE!"

The cannon roared to life, a plume of flame and smoke erupting from the barrel as a large metal shell flew from inside it and disappeared into the foliage. Moments later, a massive explosion shook the surroundings, a black and red cloud bursting through the trees and launching broken bark and branches all around. The people screamed and huddled together, even some of the Marines recoiled at the large blast, yet Goto stood tall, watching with great satisfaction the destruction that a single vehicle could bring.

"Here! You witness the true power, the absolute strength of my new weapon against pirates and criminals! Leave this as a reminder that no matter what powers evil-doers may possess, no matter if they carry Devil Fruits, these weapons will be the future of the Blues! OF ALL THE MARINES!" Goto screamed, his eyes filled with madness and glory-seeking. He waved his arms even more, hands squeezing invisible shapes and spit flying from his mouth. Under him, the people cowered, watching in horror and shock the crazed captain rave and rant. "LET IT BE A REMINDER, I AM THE ONE AND ONLY PROTECTION TO ALL THIS ISLAND!"

_SPLAT_

And once more, a gasp escaped from the ground as for the second time since his unveiling, an overripe tomato smashed against Goto's head, this time striking the back of it. Red mush wrapped around his hair, dripping down onto his shoulders and clothes, the raving captain's expression freezing completely.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Goto raised one hand towards the back of his head, scraping some of the pasted tomato from his head. Staring down at the smashed vegetable, the captain began shaking, veins popping up in his neck and head, his entire face turning as red as the object of disrespect thrown at him.

"The only protection we need around this place is of you!"

Goto's head nearly snapped from his body as he turned towards the voice, both his and the crowds' eyes wide in different measures of shock to gaze at the diminutive figure standing atop the roof of one of the buildings.

With a ragged cape fluttering in the wind, a bag at his side bulging with unknown contents, Matsu stared down defiantly at the unhinged captain, gripping in one hand a small blue ball and in the other a Marine baton.

"You think you're the big hero around here, Goto, but you're nothing but a phony!" screamed the boy, pointing his baton at the infuriated captain, who only seemed to shake even more at the show of defiance. "You think you can take the commodore's place, acting like a big shot, but I know when he comes back he'll kick your ass!"

_CRACK_

Screams of surprise sounded out from the crowd as pieces of stone and pavement were launched into the air like bullets, smoke from the pulverized ground wafting into the air around the whip buried underneath a crater. Strangling the weapon's grip, Goto looked at the boy.

A rabid beast would have been a better picture of sanity at that moment.

"YOU IMPUDENT LITTLE KID! YOU WOULD DISRESPECT THE NAME OF THE MARINES LIKE THIS?! DISRESPECT _MY_ NAME!" he screamed, pointing his remaining whip at Matsu. "I CARE NOT FOR YOUR AGE, CRIMES AGAINST THE NAVY WILL BE PUNISHED ACCORDINGLY! AND FOR REPEATED OFFENSES, YOUR CRIME WILL BE _SEVERE!_ TAKE THIS, LASH OF AGONY!". Goto lashed out with both whips, the tips flying towards the boy and blurring out of existence.

Quickly, Matsu jumped to the side, the roof where he once stood exploding into debris. He gripped the blue ball upon his hand tightly, hearing a satisfying click, before tossing it into the air.

"Special Technique, Matsu Special: Smoke Bomb Blast!". The boy swung his baton and smacked the ball towards the gathered Marines. The ball smashed at the ground just in front of them, and immediately exploded into a large cloud of blue smoke that expanded over the street, covering a large group of robots and troops and blocking their view. Thrice more Matsu repeated the same action, with the remaining balls covering the entirety of the street. Marines and civilians alike coughed within the smoke, yet Goto seemed uncaring with it, instead furiously looking around for any sign of the boy.

"STOP ACTING LIKE IDIOTS AND FIND HIM! MACHINE SOLDIERS, ADVANCE!" bellowed the captain, and in response the robots backed away from the herded crowds and walked all around, their heads swiveling to-and-fro searching for the diminutive fighter. The engines of the armored cars roared to life, their exhaust pushing the blue smoke away with their own white one, driving down the street with guns at the ready.

"Special Technique, Matsu Special: Grease Puddle Hell!"

Black balls broke through the clouds of smoke and smashed against the floor, undoing themselves into large puddles of oil. The cars were not agile enough to dodge and instead ran right over them, skidding out of control and slamming against each other on a large car wreck. Goto grit his teeth even harder, the creaking sound they produced giving chills to any close enough to hear it. It was in that moment, however, that Goto caught the faintest shape of something at the edge of his vision. Turning his head quickly towards where he had spotted the shape, Goto reeled back his arm in preparation…

" _VICIOUS LASH BITE!_ "

Before snapping his arm forward, the whip once more disappearing from view. Only this time, what echoed in the air was not stone or tiles breaking, but instead the sound of tearing cloth and skin, followed by a scream on pain and the _thud_ of something hitting the ground.

"FOUND YOU, YOU BRAT! _FIERCE LASH HURRICANE_!" shouted the captain, pulling back his whips and whirling them like fans around. Strong winds began blowing, the leather whizzing through the air at high speeds and blowing away all the smoke, and revealing two things: one the wreck caused by all the armored cars crashing against one another in a large pile upon the middle of the street.

The other was the fallen body of Matsu upon the ground trying to push himself up, grunting in pain with his shirt torn and with a large, bleeding rash on his back.

"KOKOKOKO! As I thought!" laughed the captain as he walked towards the fallen child. "You're all bark and no bite, BRAT!", and he punctuated that by stomping on the boy's back. Matsu cried out in pain, hands balling up into fists and teeth clenched. Goto turned to watch the crowd, seeing their horrified faces, before turning once more to glare at the boy upon the ground, raising his fist into the air. "Let this be a lesson to all of you… The might of the Marines… IS ETERNAL!". And with that, Goto brought down his fist, aimed straight at the boy's head…

" _Strong Iron Wave._ "

Before a powerful wave slammed against his back, launching the screaming captain onto the pile of car wreckages, toppling several of them to the ground. The Marines looked at their commanding officer crumpled into the metal in astonishment…

"You know, if you really wanted to find me this badly, an invitation and a card would suffice…"

And then turned to face towards where the voice sounded out. The voice of the man that had been their target throughout all these days.

They watched Fullbring Saga walk forward, fist thrust forward and with a cold, _cold glare_ aimed at where captain Goto had landed.

"Then again…" he continued, cracking his knuckles and twisting his shoulders. "Right now you got my full attention."

"Heh, gotta say… Seeing you work live is a lot better than through cameras," piped up another voice behind Saga, followed by a young red-haired boy in a lab coat walking from behind the fighter. As they approached, Goto finally dragged himself from the scrapheap that surrounded him, shaking the daze away.

"Who… WHO DARES DO THIS TO—Gfgh!" yet his tirade was cut short when he saw both figures approaching him. Both the outlaw that he wished to arrest… And the secret he had kept locked tight within his base.

"What's wrong there, old man? Cat got your tongue?" asked the red-haired boy cheekily, putting both his hands onto his pockets. "Don't mind me, glad you stopped all your shouting, but it still kinda shocking, you know?"

"Y… Y-You! How did you find him?! What did you do to get him?!" asked the captain, panic and anger oozing from every word he spoke. The boy looked up at the sky in thought, before giving a nonchalant shrug in return.

"Eh, he just offered me a better job opportunity than you. Truth be told, I'd have taken it just from that. You know, better work place rules, easier hours…". At that moment, the boy turned back to the captain, and brushed away the bang covering his eye. Beneath it, a purple eye glared back alongside his green one. "But right now, I'd do it for free. As long as I get my pound of flesh here."

The captain stared at both new arrivals, his eyes wide open and mouth hanging agape. That's when his chest began heaving up and down…

"… Ko… Kokoko… Kokoko! KOKOKOKOKOKOKO! KOKOKOKOKOKOKO!"

And Goto laughed. He laughed aloud, his head thrown back and hands clamped against the wrecked metal to brace himself. He laughed for an entire minute, uncaring of the horrified crowd, or even that a good Samaritan ran out into the open and grabbed the fallen Matsu before dragging him back to the relative safety of the sidelines. Finally, Goto slowly stopped, shaking his head and climbing out of the wreckage.

"Ohhhhhh… Oh, and to think! That the criminal I hated more than anything since he's arrived in my island! And the brat that gave me the keys for Marine domination, would give me such joy!" he bemused, even giving a single clap to them. "But I'm afraid you two have forgotten an important part of your imbecile plan"

"And what would that be, Captain S&M?" asked Saga, tossing his vest to the ground before settling into a ready stance. In reply, Goto simply grinned and reached into a pocket in his jacket, pulling from it a small remote.

"The fact that I outnumber you… And outgun you." And with a press of three buttons, all went into motion.

The machine soldiers all around abandoned their guard duties and ran towards Goto, forming up into squares between him and the two younger fighters. What few cars remained drove from further inside the town to beside them, almost running over several of the Marine troopers still standing on the streets. And finally, from inside one of the large hangars in the Marine base, the massive tank Goto rode upon roared to life and burst through the doors, barreling down the fences surrounding the 56th branch base and speeding towards the town.

The captain looked proudly at his encroaching "masterpiece", then turned to give me and Gears an absurdly smug look. "So then, _fools_. Any last words before I unleash the glorious firepower of my army upon you?"

Gears looked towards the approaching metal behemoth, before turning back to Goto with his own mocking glare. "Well, a couple of them come to mind… You ready for this, Saga?"

I simply smiled and gave a nod, before taking off the top of my gi and tossing it aside. "After you". And with his own smile, Gears pulled back the sleeve of coat, the young engineer revealed to all a metallic watch upon his wrist, which he placed upon the front of his mouth.

" _Launch, Brave Soldier!_ "

**-O-**

**VOICE COMMAND RECOGNIZED.**

**OPERATOR, HARDBOLT GEARS.**

**BRAVE SOLDIER, COMMENCING LAUNCH SEQUENCE.**

The entire 56th branch shook, rattling all that wasn't nailed down onto the floor, when suddenly the training ground split open upon the middle, large metal plates sliding to the sides and dropping the contents onto the black hole that was now formed…

Before five metal objects blasted off towards the city, leaving a massive trail of smoke behind them.


	5. Chapter 5

"Hoh boy, I can't wait for this."

As soon as the sound of rockets echoed all the way from the 56th Branch, I knew I was in for something _amazing_.

Or, as a certain cyborg would put it… Something SSSSSSSSSUUUUPER.

Especially because it'd be three years earlier.

And right now, as I watched five objects roaring towards all the gathered people, I couldn't keep the stupid-ass grin off my face.

"Wha… What is that, you rebellious brat!"

Goto's reaction, on the other hand…

We turned back to the sight of the captain somehow looking even angrier than he had been previously. All the hot air he had built when bringing forth his weapons seemed to deflate, replaced instead with gritted teeth, a twitching eyebrow, clenched fists and enough veins mapping his forehead and neck that I could probably chart a path with them. Overall, not the most dignified image for a Marine captain. Gears cast a glance at the captain over his shoulder, before donning a massive smirk, hands once more in his pockets.

"Come on, cap'. You really think I spent all that time building your toys?" said the engineer with a nonchallant shrug. "Those were my side projects. I mean, if I put _any_ effort into them, you think they'd lose to karate man here?"

"You know I'm right here, right?"

"I'm aware of it," he replied, briefly turning his gaze to me. "Now, where was I… Oh, right."

And when Gears turned back to Goto, there was determination in his eyes, just as the flying objects shot down towards us.

"Teaching you a lesson in firepower."

_SLAM_

Two of the objects landed hard, kicking up a cloud of dust that covered both me and Gears for a brief moment, before jets of wind pushed it all aside, revealing in their place something else.

"… Legs?"

Goto stared incredulously at the two limbs upright on the ground, when the further roaring of engines called his attention upwards, in time to see the remaining three speeding down.

Upon both legs slammed down a larger piece, parts moving to form a rounded torso as it connected by spherical joints. Two more spheres slid out at the shoulders as the last two flying parts parted from one another mid-flight and then back towards the half-assembled machine, slamming against the torso. From the ends slid out hands that clenched into fists as the limbs lowered themselves.

Gears slid his goggles over his eyes and jumped back towards the machine, the torso opening up to reveal a cramped cockpit inside, the boy sitting down inside as clamps wrapped around his waist, arms and legs and the hatch closed down. Finally, from the back swiveled up a head, with no features bar the two large glass eyes and two fin-like ears.

"Brave Soldier! Assemble!". The robot slammed its fists together and thrust one arm forward, eyes flashing brightly as…

… As an explosion went off in a nearby hill, at just the right angle to frame the mecha.

Naturally, my reaction was measured, controlled and most importantly of all, mature.

"FUCKING YES, COMBINER MECHA!" I screamed at the top of lungs, pumping my fist into the air with stars in my eyes. Below, I could see all the men having similarly natural reactions.

"A MAN'S DREAM!"

"THE HOPE OF ALL IS BORN!"

"THIS IS A MAN'S ROMANCE, GIVEN FORM!"

"THE GREATEST WEAPON OF ALL TIME!"

While the women were having such a strange reaction, staring blankly at the most beautiful creation ever devised by a human mind. Maybe they just had a bad view from where they stood? Oh well, maybe I'd ask for Gears to do it again when we finished up things here. Speaking of Gears...

" **Well then, captain,** " boomed the mecha, hitting its fist against its palm. " **What do you think of the result of several weeks' worth of work and planning? You should be proud, after all you authorized the materials and everything else for it!** "

For the captain's reaction, it was exactly what I expected. Mouth agape, arms slackened by his side, eyes widened in shock… Yep, just about what it should be.

Had to give him credit, though, he recovered fairly quickly, shaking his head and straightening his pose before pointing at us menacingly with his whips. "ALL TROOPS, SEIZE THESE CRIMINALS AT ONCE! MARCH!". Behind him, the mechanical troops jerked into attention, raising their arms forward before marching ominously around Goto and towards us.

"Alright, go time it is then," I said with a grin, spinning my arm around. "I'll handle the cannon fodder, you go deal with the big boss, Gears."

" **Heh, fair enough. Try to not get smashed out there!** " replied the boy, turning his mecha around and running off towards the approaching giant tank. With a smile in my lips, I watched the machine go away, before turning back to the mass of metal getting closer.

"Alright, you knock-off Robocops… Let's do this!"

**-O-**

"Hydraulics are good, structural integrity on the green, all weapons functional… Heh, sometimes, my genius surprises even myself," muttered Gears with a grin as his Brave Soldier dashed towards the massive tank he had previously built for Goto.

Honestly, it was gaudy beyond belief. Guns all over, pointing everywhere with no rime or reason, just for the sake of showing off. The sheer size making it unable to go into most city streets or enclosed spaces, meaning ambushes would be plentiful. The large treads, so easy to hit and damage with enough firepower, making the whole thing immobile.

And of course, the honest-to-god palanquin at the top with control switches hidden around it. Seriously, the only good of it was for the damned speeches the captain always gave, who would put themselves that openly on the line of fire?

No thanks, he'd rather stay inside the safety of his own designs.

"You know, I like to consider myself a professional when it comes to this kind of stuff," muttered Gears, pulling on the controls and forcing the Brave Soldier to skid to a halt, kicking up dirt and dust. The mecha slid to a halt just ahead of the tank, turning its glassy eyes towards the encroaching behemoth. "That I don't really _enjoy_ breaking and wrecking things. I'm a builder first and foremost. But right now…"

"Right now, nothing would make me happier than reducing you to scrap metal!" he yelled out, clenching Brave Soldier's fist in anger before thrusting forward both arms. "Eat this! _ROCKET PUNCH!_ "

Rocket engines sprouted from the elbows, belching large red flames and shooting the forearms forward, sailing across the air. Both limbs rocketed towards the tank's treads at breakneck speed before smashing against the large wheels, metal clashing against metal as the punches struggled against the heavy plating.

Yet in the end, it was Brave Soldier's fists that won over, pushing into and through the treads' wheels, the groaning echoing loudly from within as the limbs tore into the tank's machinery, before bursting from the other side, followed by an explosion from both sides as the fists flew out and back towards their owner. And of course, in the distance…

"UOOOOOOOOOH! A MAN'S TRUE WEAPON!"

"THEY FLY WITH THE WISHES AND HOPES OF ALL OF US!"

"FISTS THAT DEFEAT ALL THAT STAND IN THEIR WAY!"

The joyful cries of those who carried the spirit of mecha in their hearts.

Thankfully, said people had made the wise decision of relocating to a place far away from the active battleground that the town had become.

Gears snickered as the flying limbs flew back towards him and docked once more with Brave Soldier. It had taken him days to figure out the right calculations to have the Rocket Punches fly back and dock perfectly with the robot, but oh had it been worth it.

Yet Gears had no time to idle around. The moment the fists returned, the engineer made Soldier jump back, just in time to dodge a salvo of cannon fire that had been aimed at him. "Tch… So the captain figured out how to control it remotely, huh?"

**-O-**

"Blasted thing, work! It's not even that far away, why does this useless trash takes so long to react?!"

**-O-**

"Well then, guess we have to kick it up a notch!"

Brave Soldier reached towards its shoulders as two handles emerged from it. Gripping both tightly, the mecha pulled them out, revealing two long double-edged swords, with a circular red emblem below the blade bearing a golden V.

" ** _BRAVE SWORD!_** "

Dashing forward once more, Gears dodged and weaved as the ground exploded around him with cannon fire, the tank's lumbering turrets failing to keep up with the surprisingly agile robot approaching it. With a defiant shout, Gears slammed down on the pedals, making the Brave leap onto the air just as another explosion rocked the space he had occupied, flying straight towards two of the largest turrets.

" _ **Soldier Slash!** "_

The Soldier crossed its arms in front of its chest then lashed out, slicing the barrel of three cannons clean off. Just as it began to fall back to the ground, the mecha spun its hands and stabbed straight onto the side of the vehicle, burying its blades onto the metal armor and skidding to a halt. Gears felt the servos groan at the sudden stop, but they held on tightly.

With a grunt, the engineer pushed the control levers forward with all his strength, making the mecha heave up on its swords and launching onto the air once more, this time landing right atop the vehicle. The turrets begun to turn, yet their barrels slammed against one another or simply failed to turn enough to aim at the new passenger.

Just as Gears had built them to be.

With a flick of a few switches, two twin cannons sprouted from the mecha's forearms, aimed down straight at the tank below.

" ** _Brave Cannon, fire!_** "

Four loud explosions went off as the mecha's guns fired, blasting their rounds straight through the tank's top armor and into its internals, followed by another explosion as the metal behemoth's insides detonated from the attack. Gun turrets blew apart or jolted from the destruction of the attack, or simply belched out smoke and fell silent, sagging on their mounts as flames licked out from their seams.

Brave Soldier jumped once more off the tank, this time yanking his swords from the tank's side as he fell before crashing onto the ground for the third time in such a short span. Gears turned the mecha's gaze to the lumbering behemoth belching flame and smoke still towering above him to take in the damage he had caused.

Of the twenty-two turrets: six were destroyed, four heavily damaged, eight lightly damaged, two immobile, the rest still functional. If barely.

Threads damaged, but apparently still mobile enough to push it forward.

Plating severely damaged, internals very much on fire but still operational, and still receiving commands from Goto's remote unit.

"… I really wish me slacking off still wasn't this good," grumbled Gears. Dammit, did he really built stuff of this quality even when trying to low-ball it?! He could have gotten worst results by throwing random parts in a giant mixer and gluing the result together!

His suspicions were only made worse when, with a pained yet loud roar, the tank once more began moving forward, pieces of its armor peeling off and crashing down around the vehicle as it plodded ever onward towards the town. "Aaaahhh, hell… Alright, come on Soldier, I built you a lot better than that oversized trolley! Let's show them what we can do!" he yelled out defiantly, the mecha's eyes flashing as in agreement.

_BOOOOM_

In that moment, however, a large explosion went off in the direction of the town, plumes of fire and smoke reaching up to the sky. Gazing at destruction being wrought to the town, Gears simply shifted his body around and began dashing towards it.

"You better be working extra hard there, Mr. Hermit, or we're going to have _words._ "

**-O-**

" _Strong Iron Wave!_ "

A blast of vibrating air flew from my outstretched palm, slamming against three more machine soldiers and breaking them like tin toys. A breath barely escaped my lips before more gunfire peppered around me, forcing me to dash into an alleyway just as a shell from an armored car's cannon pulverized the space I had been, disappearing into the spaces between buildings.

You know, whenever they talk about fighting mooks, they never quite mention one thing: that in real life, they don't give you breathing room by coming forward one at a time.

That was the situation I found myself in. "That" being constantly running from robots that kept saying things like "Criminal detected", or "Apprehension in progress", or even a "Submit or be harmed". Because yes, I really was planning to stop and throw my arms up in surrender.

It was around the same time I expected Sanji to stop womanizing.

But for now, I was trying to inch myself my life at every second, and boy was it proving to be a chore. All my training _was_ paying off, thankfully enough, but too many close calls had piled on for my comfort. A few bullets grazing a bit too much of my skin for comfort, some explosions that I realized weren't as far as I thought them to be, a machine soldier or car here and there that popped up from blind corners…

Plus, you know, the stress of fighting in a town.

 _Thankfully_ , from some fluke of luck or by the hammer of good sense slamming down on the entire crowd at once, the inhabitants ran for the hills the moment the fighting started.

The men did stop to cheer on Gears when they saw him use rocket punches (seriously that had been so COOL!), but were dragged away by the civilians who weren't gawking.

… Not that I wouldn't have gawked myself, far from it, but fighting for my life takes priority after all. I could shout in excitement at Gears combining mecha later, when I wasn't at risk of getting a few more breathing holes—

"WHOA SHIT!"

The curse barely left my lips before I rolled forward and sprawled onto the ground, a fist far larger than my head smashing swinging wide and burying itself into the wall of the building right next to where I had emerged. The large robot attached _to_ said fist simply pulled its arm free from the brick wall and turned to face me, raising both arms above its head.

"VIOLENCE WILL BE RETURNED IN EQUAL," it droned loudly before bringing its arms down towards me. Quickly, I shot up to my feet and reached for the arms, feeling the full force of the blow threaten to bury me a few feet more onto the floor.

Gritting my teeth, I pushed back against the robot's arms with all the strength I could muster, my fingers digging into the armor plating as slowly but surely, the metal limbs were pushed away from me and back towards their owner. Finally, with one roar of anger, I _pushed_ and _pulled_ on the limbs, ripping them from their sockets and unbalancing the machine soldier. Tossing them aside, I closed the distance between me and him, already feeling the vibrations build on my clenched fist before I threw the punch forward.

" _Roaring Dragon Fang!_ "

The attack punched clean through the robot's torso, pushing wires and electronics out from its back and splattering oil onto the floor and my arm. The robot spurted out some broken sounds before going limp atop my forearm before I pulled it back with a wince, feeling a few shards of metal poke at my skin.

No blood though, that was a plus.

A wall exploding into rubble to my side heralded the arrival of another of the larger robots, this one also with oversized fists and bearing down towards me, only jogging instead of walking like the others.

"SUBMIT FOR ARREST," it bellowed, rearing back one fist ready to punch me. I dashed forward as well, my own arm ready to throw another Fang at his chest-

_WHAM_

When out of freaking _nowhere_ an armored truck slammed into me and flung my body through the storefront of a building right behind me, shattering the brick and glass with my body and through wooden furniture that was probably proudly sold here, now reduced to splinters and broken parts.

I gasped out for breath as the pain wreaked hell on my chest, feeling the blood trickle down the side of my head even as I dragged myself from the pile of rubble and broken furniture that laid under and around me, just in time to witness more mechanical soldiers walking into the building through the hole I made, with the armored car outside aiming its turret towards me. I dragged myself onto all fours on the floor, staring up with clouded vision as they pointed their weapons towards me, saying something that I couldn't really hear over the ringing in my ears.

But right now, the image I saw started becoming less... concrete. I couldn't really see the image of metal robots and vehicles facing me from the other side.

I _could_ see, however, several large figures, all of them with sickening grins and sneers, pointing, laughing, jeering.

 _Enjoying_.

In that moment, I felt a single emotion overtake me. One I'd become _very_ familiar with.

 _RAGE_.

" _EXPLODING ROAR WAVE!_ " I screamed, driving my fist onto the floor with all the strength I could muster. I felt the vibrations explode from my fist and into a wave of pure force that barreled towards the robots. Even as they fired, the bullets were pushed aside by the attack and away from me, before crashing onto the foot soldiers. Their bodies were flung aside easily, slamming against the interior of the building or away onto the street as the attack finally struck the armored car, tearing a hole clean through it. A pillar of flame and smoke rose into the sky as the mangled vehicle exploded and I crossed my arms in front of my face to shield me from the debris, though that did nothing to stop me from flying back into the pile of debris that I had so graciously caused earlier.

When the dust settled, there was nothing but broken machines inside the destroyed room. A few small flames still burned against whatever wood was intact, the floor above had collapsed and spilled broken furniture into a neat pile, and one of the doors from the armored car had flown and buried itself into the wall, _dangerously_ close of having almost lopped my right arm off.

And after a brief moment, the mirage of memories faded away, alongside the veil of anger that had been clouding my vision.

...

Dammit… Dammit all…

The sound of more explosions coming from further away drew me from the last dregs of the rage haze I was swimming on and made me shoot to my feet. That proved to be a horrible mistake, considering the _mind-bogglingly intense_ pain that flared up from it.

"MOTHER-! What in the-!? … Oh."

My planned rant was cut short when I noticed the even more tattered state of my pants, the several shards of metal buried in my legs, and the quite numerous trickles of blood seeping down the barely plugged holes they had created and remained on.

Cool looking in an extremely sick and twisted way? Definitely.

Most likely to hamper my fighting ability? Like you wouldn't believe it.

Capable of stopping me?

Pffft. As if.

And so, with some of the worst pain I had felt in quite some time, I limped my way to the sources of the still on-going explosions, hoping to high heaven and low hell that I could fight immobile.

And that Gears could handle himself for now.

**-O-**

"Definitely… Not my best… Test run!"

Said boy genius growled through grit teeth as he jerked the Brave Soldier in every conceivable angle his joints would allow to dodge the mountain of gunfire being thrown at him, from both the flaming yet mobile wreck of the gigantic tank still heading towards the town, and from the gathered mass of robots and trucks that were now lining the edge of the same town and firing _their_ weapons at him. A few bullets did manage to hit him, but thankfully the Soldier's armors had just barely been nicked, with only three having gotten through.

_SHUNK_

… Make that four.

And the worst part? He couldn't even fire back. If he stopped, he'd get hit, and if he started getting hit, then amazing construction or not the Brave Soldier would not last. What he needed was an opening, just anything would do! Just enough to use his finishing move…

A cannon shot blasted the ground next to him with a new crater, followed by another going off right in front of him. The mecha was launched back by the shockwave, and barely managed to right itself in time to cross its arms and block the subsequent barrage that washed over him, with one lucky shot piercing through the forearm and straight into the built-in cannons. When the alarm blared inside the cockpit, Gears barely had time to widen his eyes and slam down on the "Left Arm Purge" button before sparks flew from the forearm, and with a burst of smoke the limb exploded with enough force to stumble the Brave Soldier and make Gears jerk around and slam his head against the sides of the cockpit, earning him a cut on his temple that quickly began trickling blood. With a pained growl, the boy put a hand over the cut, feeling the warm liquid run against his skin, before wiping it away crudely with his sleeve, just in time to hear the ever-increasingly annoying laugh of the captain as he climbed aboard the half-wrecked tank, posing grandiosely as he pointed and laughed.

"KOKOKOKOKOKO! I thought you were going to give me a lesson in firepower, boy, not fireworks!" chortled the man as he forced the molten vehicle to maneuver until it was parked right in-between all the machines that had gathered to fight.

"Oh I'll give you fireworks alright," muttered the engineer as he made Brave Soldier rise up and grasped a control stick right in the middle of the cockpit, flipping the cover of the Big Red Button atop it and making a target reticle appear from the control panel. "Come on, just keep gloating…"

"And in the end, all for nothing! Look at you and your feeble creation, kneeling in defeat in the face of what you called simple toys! But now you see, that is the might of Absolute Justice! And it shall never be defeated, just as this new iron fortress of the Marines will not fall at the hands of criminals!"

"Just a little more… Stay right there…"

"But enough babbling! Now… Now you're finished! ALL UNITS, OPEN-!"

_BOOOOOOOOOOM!_

"… Fire?"

Goto's grandstanding gave way to confusion as he turned to witness the fresh scrap that had become the right side of his formation fly all around, a ball of fire and smoke slowly vanishing to reveal a figure holding in its grasp a smoking cannon, with a pained grin plastered in their face.

"Hey there. Hope I didn't miss much," called out Saga as he set down the cannon and took up a shaky stance, his legs wobbling a bit from the injuries still on them.

It was just what Gears had needed. Just as the captain made to order his machines to turn and fight, Gears forced Brave Soldier to stand up and pressed the button on the control lever.

" **Got ya! Eat this! _BREAST FIRE!_** "

The armor plates on the mecha's chest opened, revealing two large turbines glowing bright red beneath them, which quickly flashed…

And launched a _massive_ red wave of pure heat at the large tank. Goto barely had time to begin screaming before the attack slammed against the damaged vehicle, a massive flare erupting at the contact point. Slowly but surely, what little plating remained began giving way and melting down under the attack as explosions began rocking the tank, one of them launching Goto off the vehicle and through the window of a building.

And thus, as what little ammunition that remained inside the machine was struck by the heat beam and ignited, the tank was enveloped in a _gigantic_ fireball that erupted from within, launching bits of metal and wrecked parts all around. The flames quickly expanded outwards, engulfing the robots and cars that surrounded the place and tossing them aside like ragdolls, barreling quickly towards the damaged Soldier and injured Saga. The mecha braced itself as best as it could moments before the shockwave washed over it, pushing it back enough to make it dig through the ground, while Saga took the cannon and slammed it barrel-first into the ground as a makeshift anchor and shield just as the scraps and flames began flying around him, the fighter gritting his teeth as his legs buckled under him and forced him to his knees.

And just as fast as it began, it ended. The explosion subsided and the flames settled, leaving behind only the still echoing boom, scant pockets of burning fire…

And a ruined edge of town that had its limit decreased by one street.

Overall? It could be worse.

With a hiss, the head of the Brave Soldier pulled back and the chest fully opened, allowing Gears to rise from his seat and peer at the destruction they had rather unwittingly caused. Further away, Saga finally let go of his makeshift anchor and rose from the ground with a scrunched expression of pain, blinking until he finally managed to clear his vision, at which point he let out a low whistle.

"… So… You think we can still spin in our favor?" he asked sheepishly, limping his way towards the Brave Soldier as Gears slid his goggles off and leaned against the edge of the cockpit.

"… Depends… As long as we clean up the bulk of this whole thing… Maybe we can—"

_Crrreeeeeeeak—CRACK! CRASH!_

"… Yeah forget it we're screwed," he finished, watching another building collapse under its own weight, kicking up yet another cloud of dust.

"You most certainly… Are."

Both quickly turned their heads and watched in differing levels of surprise as Captain Goto dragged himself from beneath a massive pile of wreckage, looking not quite as grandiose as he did before.

His coat was burned in several spots, his shirt torn to a simple belt, a few missing teeth and one black eye, not to mention one boot missing and only one whip hanging from his hip. Had he been on his underwear, it would not have changed much.

"You… You miserable little _punks_ …" growled the man as he grasped the handle of his whip with a shaking hand. "My dreams… My _destiny_ … You've crushed it all into bits!"

"Well, what can I say? It looked like a fun thing to do!" snarked back Saga, even though he suddenly stumbled while walking and barely managed to keep himself upright. The fact he looked a bit too pale did not paint a good picture.

"Fun, he says… Fun… Fun! I'LL SHOW YOU FUN, YOU PATHETIC INSECT!" screamed the Marine, heaving his whip back…

_SNAP_

Only to suddenly find it stuck taut and unmoving, followed by the weapon returning and smacking against the back of his head. With his anger fuming even further than before, he threw the whip aside and spun to face his back. "WHO DARES TO INTERRUPT—H-Hrgh!"

Only to have his words die a horrible, _horrible_ death in his throat, at the same time Gears and Saga's hopes plunged into the same pit of hopelessness.

"… Correction…" muttered the engineer, the sweat building on the back of his neck at an alarming pace, while Saga simply swallowed a massive dry lump. "We are _unbelievably fucked._ "

And all they could do was watch as a tall, imposing figure draped in a long black and white trench coat with a tornado painted on each side, a commissar cap emblazoned with a red anchor atop his head, pipe resting in his lips and hands held behind his back strode towards them, his expression placid as his deep green eyes shifted from the trembling Captain Goto to the engineer and fighter standing like deer in the headlights.

"Gentleman," he spoke calmly, before taking his pipe from his lips and blowing a perfect smoke circle from his mouth. "I believe there is some explanations to be given."

"C-Commodore Soku…"


	6. Chapter 6

Now, let me make it perfectly clear: I am a person of limits.

I know exactly how far I can go with things (most of the time, at least), and if things go pear shaped I know when to cut my losses and make a strategic retreat.

If the situation, hypothetically speaking, had been me and a genius engineer against a Marine captain with a case of overinflated ego and above-average durability, with no outside interference? Then sure, I'd still be taking the fight to him, injuries be damned.

Right now? I'd be making a break for it if my legs weren't shredded like parmesan cheese.

Because standing right in front of us three, looking a LOT more the part of a true Marine officer than Goto and very much likely of kicking our collective asses, was the commanding officer of this island's garrison. And while he didn't look pissed off at us… Well, I know the Marines. They can keep a calm and collected face while also being world-shatteringly furious at you.

Said officer scanned the destroyed portions of the village just as calmly as he did the wrecked robot army, the damaged Brave Soldier, me and Gears staring at him with sweat pouring down our faces, before finally coming to rest on the quivering mess that was Goto. "Very well then… Captain Goto."

"S-S-SIR, YES SIR!"

"I believe it is your duty to… Explain… What has occurred here during my absence," spoke the commodore as he placed his pipe on his mouth once more.

"G-Glady, commodore Soku!" screamed the captain in return, shooting into a ramrod salute that was made even more impressive by the fact that I'm seventy percent sure his ankles had been broken a second ago.

Of course, said admiration was _squashed_ when I saw the evil, _eeeeeevil_ grin that became plastered on his face for the brief second his eyes turned towards me and Gears, before returning to his frightened expression of before. "As you can see, commodore, these two criminals have DARED to attack us, and brought with them a most foul army of machines!"

… Oh, you pompous _asshole_.

"And this is the destruction they brought upon our home, commodore! See it now!" and Goto swept his arm at the ruined city (I did take some pleasure in seeing him wince in pain at the sudden movement). "And though our corps members fought bravely, they could not stop the onslaught of the Hermit and his wretched machinist!"

"He's already lumping me with you, wow…" muttered Gears just loud enough that I could hear him. "Well, at least you got me working for you preemptively."

I felt the anger boiling in my chest and rising up, as I began limping towards the big-mouth of a captain—

"So this is the Hermit?"

Ohsweetmotherofmercyohno—

"Hmmm… an interesting character…" muttered the captain who was now _standing right in front of me and holding my head in place._ "Certainly looks strong… But…"

Thankfully, before I could freak out and do something that would most certainly end with me in a gaol ship, the commodore disappeared from view… And reappeared right in front of Gears, also holding the engineer's head and moving it side-to-side.

What the hell was that? That wasn't Shave, I couldn't hear him moving at all. Was this a Devil Fruit? Then what the hell kind of fruit would do this?

"See, commodore?! They are engines of destruction, led by criminals who wish nothing more than to harm those under our protection," continued the captain, his expression growing more and more eager with every word. "So, commodore, give the order, and I will gather our remaining soldiers and arrest these fools!"

And so I tensed. Gears tensed. We both stared at the now still commodore as he took a step back from the Brave Soldier and his turned his head toward the destroyed machines still wafting smoke, his back turned towards Goto. "… Tell me captain. Are you aware of why I have left the village so constantly?"

That seemed to catch the captain off-guard, the man looking at the black-clad Marine with a confused expression. "Uhh… I… Do not follow, commodore."

"The Marines bring justice to this world, captain Goto," continued the commodore, folding his hands behind his back. "We are the only protection that the common folk can believe on to keep them safe from the dangers that lurk these oceans. Pirates, criminals, lowlifes and despots who believe themselves above the law." The commodore turned back towards his subordinate, and hoo boy.

If I didn't know the Chilly-Chilly Fruit already had an owner, I would have called the man right here its user. That was an _ice-cold_ glare he had.

"And there are some things, captain, that tarnish said image. That make civilians untrustworthy of our flags and goals," he continued, taking a few steps closer to the bewildered Marine. "Glory hounding. Fear mongering. Oppression and abuse of power… Deceit."

"I… I-If I may, c-commodore—"

"It was for those reasons, captain, that I was recalled to West Blue Central Command. Because they have decided that the grip of Justice should be applied to any and all misdeeds, no matter their source." The captain stared dumbfounded at his commanding officer, and took one step forward.

"C-Commodore, what—"

Now, allow me to list exactly what happened.

I saw Goto take a step forward.

I blinked.

And now I was looking at Goto puking his guts out into the ground, clutching his abdomen and keeling over, while the commodore was standing in the exact same spot, in the exact same position.

I should probably also mention that I was scared quite shitless by now.

"And it was for these reasons, _captain Goto_ … That my promotion to the Marines' Internal Affairs Division came down from Marine Headquarters," spat the captain disdainfully while rubbing his knuckles. "Do you _truly_ believe I did not think to keep surveillance upon my own base, to make sure that order was maintained while I remained abroad? That you thought a good idea to bring in a pressganged child to build an army of machines for your personal use?"

I couldn't help a snicker escaping my lips as I turned towards Gears and saw him scowling at the commodore, mumbling something about "being fifteen" and how he wasn't a kid anymore.

Goto barely managed to raise his head to gape at his commanding officer, one hand reaching out towards the black-clad Marine. "C… C-Commodore… I—"

"Consider yourself striped of authority and rank. And under arrest, with a pending investigation," finished the Marine before once more disappearing from view, reappearing yet again right in front of me.

"… Well… Uhh, thanks for the help?" I finally muttered, glancing up at the commodore nervously. "I mean, sorry for the town, but you know, I had to—"

"You will _also_ be held for questioning," he spoke suddenly, pinning me with the same glare he had given Goto. Surprisingly, it seemed to soften after a moment when he stared at my injured legs. "… After you are given medical treatment, of course. But I still ask you do not resist." He then turned to Gears, eyeing the engineer and Brave Soldier top to bottom. "The same applies to you, young one. And your machine will be confiscated as well, until the end of the investigation."

I took a long look at the commodore standing right in front of me, his uniform still pristine and without a speck of dirt or spittle. I turned to watch the now curled up captain writhing in pain, the burning fires of the destroyed robots that were now being handled by a mob of arriving Marines.

A flare of pain in my legs helped make my decision faster. With a sigh, I shook my head and braced against the piece of metal that had been serving as a makeshift cane. "Well… Can't be that bad, can it?"

**-O-**

I was wrong. It was bad.

Turns out even if the commodore had been courteous enough to take care of my injuries, didn't mean the soldiers were going to be _gentle_ about it. So not two seconds after I agreed to be interrogated, I was put in seastone shackles, hauled off to the infirmary, and then got shackled _again_ , this time to the bed. The base doctor then showed up, pulled all the shrapnel from my legs _without putting me under_ , bandaged them and told me to rest and not get out bed.

I don't know if this was because they got washed out when they tried attacking my ship, but still… _OW._

Thankfully, the actual investigation part didn't take long, at least for me. A few Marines in black showed up in my room and began asking questions. Things like "When did you arrive in this island," or "What is your affiliation to the boy." Name, active bounty if any, material possessions… Everything that could be used to identify me. I suppose they had already checked all that information, but were testing me to see how I'd react and answer the questions, see if I was hiding anything.

Thankfully they didn't ask "are you an interdimensional traveler trying to survive in our world?" That would have been awkward to answer truthfully. The commodore turned out to be a surprisingly calm man once the whole "destroyed city" thing passed, though the fact he could probably flatten me with that unknown ability of his was still something to mull about.

I also managed to convince them to send a message up to my _other_ crewmate to bring the ship closer to the town and await a signal to dock, to not worry about the Marines unless they specifically started attacking, and for them to leave a flare gun ready for me in the docks. Hopefully they wouldn't try their luck, but if they did… Well, I'd burn that bridge if we got there.

A couple of days later, I was allowed to leave the room, with word that my injuries would take two more days to completely close and heal, but for me it was enough. They _also_ gave me some spare clothes to replace my ruined ones from the battle. And so, wearing a plain white tank top, blue cargo pants and my (miraculously intact) wooden sandals, I left the infirmary of the 56th Branch, walking until I reached the training grounds overlooking the island. From said vantage point, I saw the Marines and citizens rebuilding the destroyed homes or cleaning up what remained of the machine army's debris. They had made good progress too, with everything inside the village already cleaned out, and the outer edge halfway through being cleared. The mega-tank's wreck was still mostly intact, probably being left for last, but the speed they were working on really was admirable. Sometimes I even saw Matsu hoping all over the place, carrying materials and squeezing himself onto corners that adults couldn't. Guess the little kid was tougher than he looked.

Honestly, seeing all of the villagers working together like that… Heh, lemme tell ya, it was pretty inspiring. Pity I was leaving it all behind so soon…

"Glad to see you up and about already. At least you're as tough as you look."

I turned around at the voice greeting me, and was met with the sight of Gears with his bandaged arms crossed and a grin in his face, another piece of bandage wrapped around his forehead and keeping his bangs up and allowing me to see both his eyes.

"You look fine too. Guess having a robot to fight for you helps," I snarked back with a chuckle, only to have my ribs remind me they were still plenty busted. "Ow… Nice mecha by the way, that was the coolest fucking thing I've seen in a while."

"Heh. Why of course it's cool. I built it, after all," replied the engineer, crossing his arms behind his back. "Still, there's a lot of room for improvement on the big guy. Can't believe I lost to those tin cans… Well, even if they _were_ built by me, I expected more from my pet project. Nice work, by the way, I saw what you did to the ones in the town square."

"Oh, uhh... Yeah, no... No problem. Thanks..."

I turned away from Gears, just to make sure, and crossed my arms. I didn't need to let him see how bad they were trembling, nor how I badly was grimacing.

Change the subject, _fast_.

"Well, what about my offer?" I finally asked, back still turned to Gears. "Still feel like joining up with me?"

Please say yes please say yes please say yes…

I heard a hum from behind, a tapping of feet, some ruffling of clothes. Until…

"… Yeah, sure, why not," he finally spoke. "I mean, you technically did your part."

SCORE!

I turned, and was once more greeted by the sight of Gears smiling, hands now in his pockets. But he seemed… Friendlier now. Without that overtone of cockiness he seemed to have. His posture was more relaxed, and there was a certain… Glint in his eyes.

Like he was a little kid going on an adventure.

That quickly vanished however, and the engineer let out a snicker. "Of course, assuming that we don't get arrested though."

"You won't."

"HOLY-!"

"Oh there you are, commodore."

If Ivankov had to heal me with hormones come Impel Down, I'm pretty sure I'd keel over dead, because right now I felt half my lifespan exploding out of my body and heart when commodore Soku seemed to just _materialize_ next to us.

 _Seriously_ , how could he just _do_ that?!

"I see your injuries are healing properly," continued the Marine, calmly holding his pipe as smoke wafted from it. "I'm pleased to see the many rumors surrounding your capabilities aren't unfounded, Hermit."

"Well, what can I say? When you're out there on the big seas, you gotta make sure you're ready for anything," I replied with a snicker and arms crossed. "What about bounties, though? I know you can't hide the fact we pummeled a Marine officer to the ground."

That had the effect I had in my mind. The commodore's expression grew more serious as he pulled a small pile of paper from his coat and turned it to us. Right in the first page were written several statements, analysis and records of what had happened in the island. At the top, it read INCIDENT R.O-5, with the commodore's name beneath it.

"An official report has been prepared and is now to be shipped to West Blue Central Command. The blame for all these events has fallen upon Goto, in part due to the very… convincing… testimony given by the inhabitants." The amusement in his voice at those final words did not escape me or Gears, which only made us chuckle harder. The small smile that grew on his face pushed away my fears of having my skull caved in, at least. "As such, he will be stripped of rank and most likely arrested. And young Gears, as a victim of such a crime, has been cleared of any responsibility, with his work being marked as 'necessary for his continued well-being', according to his own words. Your equipment and combat machine have been placed under guard in a Marine warehouse at the port, awaiting pick up." The commodore placed the papers back inside his coat, then raised his pipe to his lips, taking a long, drawn-out puff from it before blowing all the smoke out. "You, on the other hand… While your actions in the last ten years have been innocent enough, the fact still remains you assaulted a Marine officer, and Goto will most likely report it… I'm sorry to say, but I can only delay the release of your bounty, not stop it."

I lowered my head in thought, letting out a drawn-out hum. It made sense, all things considered. The Marines wouldn't let an attack on "Justice" slide like that, no matter how justified we had been in trying to knock his teeth loose.

Still…

"… Hey commodore, would you spare me a few moments?" I asked, raising my head once more to stare at the man. "Just a quick talk, nothing more."

The commodore, in return, merely returned the gaze to me, his own face becoming very serious as we stared at one another. Off to the side, Gears watched us both, until finally he let out a cough. "I'm, uhh… Gonna go grab some chocolate in the village… Have fun, you two!"

And with that, he left, running just a _bit_ faster than necessary.

It was only when I saw him disappear down the road towards the village that I finally spoke again. "What's _really_ going to happen to this whole mess, commodore?"

"What do you mean, young man?"

"Oh, you know exactly what I mean, commodore," I continued, this time with a bit more edge in my voice. "Even if you're doing this as Internal Affairs, we both know the World Government would never let an investigation like this move forward. After all, Justice must be _absolute_ , doesn't it? And the Marines must stay infallible in their mission."

Considering the way the commodore's fists tightened when I finished that sentence, it probably wasn't a good idea saying that. But hey, screw it, might as well keep going. If I die, I die, right?

"But if I may be so bold as to say it, commodore, sometimes the Marines end up almost as bad as the criminals they fight."

"And I assume you have proof of such a claim," spoke up Soku, his voice lowering enough that it was more a menacing growl. "You heard my words to the captain: corruption is unacceptable in the Marines. It poisons our duty and clouds our goals."

"Cocoyasi Village. Shells Town. Tequila Wolf. Sabaody Archipelago. Dressrosa. Fishman Island. Alabasta."

Soku's expression switched to confusion for a moment, but quickly hardened again. "What are those locations?"

"Places that you should go poking around, commodore, if you really want to uphold those ideals," I said, taking one step closer to the Marine. "Though of course, I recommend you keep a low profile if you do. The World Government doesn't take kindly to having its past dug up. Or hell, put a map from twenty years ago next to a recent one. You'd be surprised how many countries seemed to just… _Vanish_."

As I spoke, I felt an anger rising in my chest. I started drawing in deep breaths, trying to smother the burning feeling in my heart, and slowly but surely it began subsiding. It still felt like something had a vice grip in my chest, but I was keeping it in check.

The burning on my scars, however…

"So you are suggesting that the World Government simply covers internal crimes and negligence, is that so?"

"Commodore, they not only cover it up, they encourage it."

Was it unhealthy that I was growing used to his apparent teleporting? Because I didn't flinch when a blast of wind flew past my head and away from the garrison. Thankfully at least, it wasn't aimed even close to the village.

Pretty sure I would have tinnitus or something if this had been the normal world.

"Allow me to be clear, mister Fullbring," _snarled_ the commodore, his clenched fist trembling next to me. "Unless you have actual proof of your… _Accusations_ … You are inviting upon yourself the same fate that befell the _ex-captain_ in our brig."

"I can't give you proof and you know why, commodore," was my reply, and I had to fight to keep my voice level and tranquil as memories began flashing past in my mind. Memories of burning islands and of stage markets. "If it was that easy, then someone would have done it by now. I'm just one guy speaking the truth, it hardly matters in the grand scheme." I waved my arm in the direction of the docks, where a few Marine ships were now resting on, with one berth conspicuously left free. "The moment my ship picks me and Gears up and leaves, you can go about dispensing Justice to whoever you want. Business as usual, just ignore what I said and keep flying that flag of yours."

What I did next was probably a combination of mounting anger and sheer insanity. I really don't know how I lived after that.

I took a step forward and jabbed my finger right onto Soku's chest, right where his heart way, and where coincidentally the emblem of the Marines had been etched onto his shirt.

"Or you can go after some answers of your own, start searching the system, and maybe wash the rot away from that symbol you uphold so much." I then backed away from commodore and turned towards the village, taking a few steps forward before tearing away the bandages in my legs and letting them fly off in the wind. "To answer that question myself: Goto will either be expelled from the corps and forgotten, or get a fat promotion for giving the World Government the starting steps for a robot army. I guess it'll depend on how much they can salvage out of that." I turned around… And left.

I kept waiting for Soku to appear in front of me, cut me off from leaving, maybe even try to arrest me or something like that. Truth be told, it would have at least made me realize I was right all along.

I'd probably be bruised head to toe and on my way to Impel Down, but I would have been right.

But nothing happened.

I got to walk away from it, with nothing but the angry thoughts in my mind.

And the burning in my scars…

**-O-**

"So, what did you want to talk about with him?"

"Just a couple of questions about the Marines. You know, stuff from the inside."

"And how bad did it go?"

"I mean, I didn't die. Isn't that a victory?"

"True, and good point."

It didn't take me very long to catch up to Gears, thankfully, and after a few more minutes of walking, the pain in my legs had pretty much subsided. I still felt some minor tingling, but at the very least I could walk without fear of falling over.

After meeting back with my new engineer in the road, we just calmly walked back to the village, making some small talk about his inventions. And boy, what he had to share sure was something.

Ideas he kept having for better robots, rocket engines, a few new alloys that he could use to upgrade the Brave Soldier…

Hell, he even already had ideas for extra parts for the mecha.

"Well, all that aside, let's get down to business," he suddenly interjected, staring at me with a hungry look in his eyes. "You said you needed an engineer because of your ship. If it really needs repairs, why not ask a ship-building company to repair it for you?"

"My ship is not exactly a commonly built one," I stated simply, and I saw how he grew even more curious now. "And requires some… Overhauls. You know, fresh coat of paint, some elbow grease, that sort of stuff. I got some of the materials already on board, but—"

"You didn't trust any shipyard to not try and steal the ship from you or something, alright, I gotcha," cut in Gears with a wave of his hand and a smile. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a lollipop, quickly undoing the wrapping before putting it inside his mouth. "You got enough space for me to load up my tools and stuff?"

"Trust me, she's got more than enough space for everything. You'll love the _Soul_."

" _Soul_?"

"Yeah, ' _Soul of Freedom_ ' is the name of my ship. Ya like it?"

"Ehhh… Corny, but charming. I'll get used to it."

"Oh, don't you give me lip, Mr. 'I built a Super Robot'."

**-O-**

_Nissus Island Main Dock, fifteen minutes later…_

The final stretch to the docks was pretty quiet. We passed by a few villagers that sent thanks our way, some kids swarming Gears to ask about the Brave Soldier and if he could build one for them (the glint in his eyes made me _quite_ aware of the answer to that, so I just dragged him away before anything could happen), even some of the Marines begrudgingly saying some mumbled "thanks" or related for getting rid of the robots.

Overall? Not bad. Made me feel good, even if we _did_ break a third of the town for this.

Said moments came to an end once we finally reached the town port, and instead all we had were the sounds of shouting by workers as they hauled materials into town and robot wreckage into large containers marked with the Marine's insignia. Off to the side, surrounded by a few tripod-mounted cannons and several armed guards was a large warehouse marked with the number 12, with a large empty berth in front of it. And as we approached, a familiar figure stepped forth from the guard line, with a bag looped around his torso. "Hey there, August. You seem better."

"As much as one can be after they've gassed to sleep," replied the Marine dourly. "I'll have some words with Matsu later about this… In any event," he quickly added, straightening his posture before motioning to the warehouse behind him. "The commodore asked that we keep your equipment and mech safe, Mister Gears. They have remained untouched, and are awaiting to be transferred to your ship, Mister Saga. Also…" August reached into his bag and withdrew from it a small orange pistol with a wide barrel, handing it to me grip-first.

With a smile, I took the offered flare gun and carefully turned it around, staring at the empty dock and towards the curve of the island. With one last look at everyone behind me, I pointed the gun up… And fired.

With a loud _bang_ , a bright white ball shot up to the sky, and at the apex of its rise, exploded into a large cloud of smoke that slowly begun to drift away from above us.

And so, we waited. And for quite a few moments, nothing happened.

Until suddenly, a soft hum could be heard, growing louder by the second. The Marines shuffled in place nervously, some of them gripping their weapons tighter, but the most distinct reaction was from Gears, who I swear was jittering on the spot as he kept eyeing the direction the noise was coming from.

And when she finally emerged from around the rock crags…

Even thirteen years after I found her, it always made me happy to see that ship.

Even with all the holes on her body, dulled paint, damaged cannons, missing pieces and a barely humming engine, she was still a place to call home. And there was all that she showed she could be.

The full steel construction painted red, the weakened but still functional hydroelectric engines pushing her forward with no need for sails, the guns that looked as deadly if not more than a battleship's, the flat, flight deck-like prow with a massive door at the middle, topped with a glass-shielded bridge, and her sheer size…

 _Soul of Freedom_ … My reason for being alive all these years after…

…

Well… Not just her, of course.

"… Hey, quick question."

I tilted my head to look at Gears, who now had a quizzical look in his face as he stared at the approaching ship. "Ask away," I replied, already pacing towards the edge of the dock as the _Soul_ entered the large area.

"You said you had someone else aboard the ship, right?"

"Yeah, from the day I found it. She had been with the _Soul_ for years."

"… Who the hell is she, then?" Just as I made to answer, however, the _Soul_ finally came to a rest, dropping both of its prow-mounted anchors down onto the water and making the entire ship groan.

And so, with the biggest shit-eating grin I could muster, I instead crossed my arms and watched as a ramp was lowered to the pier, and the large doors opened to reveal a large figure that strode out from the ship. "Why not ask her yourself?" I finally asked, watching as Gears' and all the present Marines' eyes widened into shock and surprise as they watched the figure descend the metal gangplank.

It was an armored centaur, with her forelegs covered in lozenge-shaped shields and her hind legs in more traditional armor, with the horse body covered in scaled armor. Her human half was similarly covered in heavy-looking armor, hiding away most of her body beneath steel. On her right hand was a massive anchor-like spear, while on her left was a large angular kite shield. Her head was covered in a large, triangular helmet, with an elongated horn on the forehead and four long, yellow ponytails protruding from the back. And her face…

Strong, confident, calm and with delicate features. Her bright green eyes shone like emeralds, and her skin, ivory-like, seemed to reflect the sunlight perfectly.

It was certainly… Unnatural.

But something that I had gotten used to.

"Hey there, Prydwen," I called out with a wave and a smile at the descending figure. "This is Gears. He's joining up as our engineer. Say hi!"

"Greetings, captain Saga," replied the centaur in a calm contralto, the sheer weight of her body making the pier creak in protest, though thankfully nothing came of it. She then turned to the still agape boy and curtsied toward him, crossing her arm holding the anchor-spear across her chest. "And greetings, engineer Gears. I am Prydwen, guard of this vessel. You are the one who will assist with the repairs of this ship, correct?"

At first, Gears didn't reply. He just stared a bit more at the new arrival, before blinking twice and shoving his hands inside his pockets. "Yeah, pretty much… Would have been nice to have gotten a heads-up on the wild company, though."

"I understand. Worry not, I am the _Soul of Freedom_ 's only other occupant, barring the captain," replied Prydwen, simply glossing over the commentary the boy had made. "I welcome you aboard this vessel, and leave its restoration on your capable hands. If I may show you to our storage to review our current materials…"

"Sure thing, lead on." And with another bow, the centaur trotted back up the gangplank, followed closely by the young engineer. Five steps up the ramp, however, Gears turned back to me with a smirk, and gave a quick nod. "Thanks for the job offer, man. I'll see what I can do for your ship." And with that, the boy resumed his path, soon disappearing through the large doors into the Soul's interior.

With a content hum, I turned back towards the Marines that had been guarding the warehouse.

Boy, did they look surprised.

Guess this was my first look at the official Surprised Marine Pose™, with arms straight up and mouths agape… Except for August, who instead seemed pretty… Nonchalant about the whole thing. Oh well, can't win them all.

And so it was that, with a smile, I walked up the gangplank and sat down on the edge of the ship's prow, staring up at the cloudless sky and the sun shining above.

However this whole thing had started… Twenty-one years it may have been, but things were finally looking up.

The great seas were waiting for me… And I would answer that call.

**-O-**

_East Blue, Shells Town_

Luffy stared at the crouched figure of the green-haired swordsman holding one sword in each hand and one in his mouth, as he held back the many swords wielded by Marines trying to kill him.

"Alright, so I'm a pirate," said the swordsman as he glared at the young boy in front of him, uncaring of the blades surrounding him and with his eyes shadowed by the bandana strapped atop his head. "I fought the Navy, so I guess I'm a criminal now."

"But listen up!" he suddenly shouted, much to Luffy's curiosity. "I got my own goal to fulfill! I'm gonna be the world's greatest swordsman! And on that day, my name's gonna shake the world! But if you make me abandon my dream by joining your pirate crew… I'll kill you myself!"

And hearing those words, Monkey D. Luffy just… Smiled. A wide, sincere smile, as he stared at the young man in front of him. "World's greatest swordsman? That's sounds great! The King of Pirates wouldn't have anything less on his crew! It'd make me look bad!"

And so, on that day… Two crews truly began.

One destined for the freest throne there was.

The other… To the summit at the end of the world.

**~O~**

***wipes dust off this fic and swipes the cobwebs away***

**Oh hey this didn't take long at all, didn't it?**

**Honestly though… It felt good to finish this chapter.**

**When I started this fic, it was during a time where I felt like I wasn't gonna go anywhere in life, and this served as a… Therapy of sorts. Like it was a way to make something of my life.**

**Now though, even with things being still dark… I still have a sense of accomplishment. People have been checking my stories more, my projects got quite some attention, and people have been leaving a lot more feedback.**

**It's… A really good feeling to have. And I thank you all for it.**

**Well, anyway… Here it is. A happier ending, without a cliffhanger or dramatic stuff to sound super awesome or whatever.**

**Just the start of an adventure.**

**Proper goodbyes to the other characters and the departure of the ship will be next time.**

**Now, in a bit more pressing matters… I'd like to ask:**

**Which projects do you all wanna see get more attention? Current ones being:**

**1- Discarded Blade, Renewed Purpose**

**2- Titanomachy**

**3- To Charge Against The Heavens is Noble**

**4- Meister of your Future**

**I'll open a poll on SpaceBattles (and for you guys on SpaceBattles seeing this, it's right up there!) and we'll see what gets more updates.**

**Well, anyway… Once more, guys, thank you so much. See you all on the flipside!**


	7. Chapter 7

**And we’re back at it again!**

**We return to the absolute chaos that is this runaway Sea Train, there’s no brakes and I’m plowing through any common sense.**

**As I’ve mentioned in the Discarded Blade chapter, several things have been changed in the previous fic chapters. The list of changes include:**

**1- The entire solo Saga part in Chapter 5**

**2- His title, powers and physical appearance**

**3- Some lines of speech**

**These changes were made after a lot of feedback from CV12Hornet, Patient One and Spoken, who donated some of their time to help me with some criticism. This also influenced a LOT of decisions for both immediate AND future plots, which now are very different from their original plans. And honestly, I’m very happy with this, because that allowed me to realize how edgy some of this shit was. We’re talking OW THE EDGE levels of stuff. Some of the reviews have also influenced that decision.**

**In summation: Charge the Heavens has a now different heading, and I feel it’ll be better overall for it. And I have writers and readers to thank for it. So, thank you all :)**

**Now, enough melodrama. We’re here for bad SIs! So let’s get to it.**

**~O~**

Seventy-two hours.

Seventy-two hours was the time it took Gears to go over the entire ship, quite literally down to the nuts and bolts, and give his report of its condition.

Well, technically forty-eight hours. The other twenty-four were spent drawing up drafts, sketches and lists of all the stuff we’d need to help repair the _Spirit of Freedom_ , plus some minor clean-up of the ship’s insides.

We needed a _lot_.

And he hadn’t even talked about it yet, that was just from me looking at the scarily _large_ pile of papers he had set in front of him.

“So… Are you done?” I asked in a tone both of dread and hope as I tried to rub the sleep out of my eyes, while the young engineer stood across the desk with his arms crossed. We had set up a table right outside the ship, in front of the warehouse storing Brave Soldier, with a few wooden crates for a makeshift wall and privacy. And after a long pause, Gears gave a non-challan shrug, followed by a nod.

“Pretty much, yeah. Prydwen took me through the whole ship, plus I could make some educated guesses myself on the stuff,” he said, pulling a large rolled up paper, that he quickly unfurled atop the table. A quick look showed that he had drawn a diagram of the _Spirit_ , with several red circles around points of the ship and technical jargon written beside it that honestly, I wasn’t even going to _bother_ trying to understand. “Bluntly? It’s a miracle how intact your ship is… Internally, I mean. The frame itself and structure are completely untouched, no wear and tear at all, so no fear of having it breaking in two in the middle of the sea… That’s where the good news stops, though.”

“Alright, how bad?”

“Hoo, boy, where do I even start… Okay, piece by piece: hull needs to replaced, completely. If we get into a shootout with another ship, even glances will punch through that old thing. The interior rooms need to be rebuilt too, have the debris cleaned out, refurnishing… The works. Fresh coat of paint too.” As Gears spoke, he pointed to every part with a telescopic rod that he apparently called the “Cool Stick”, something that I had to _really_ fight not to laugh at. “Cannons themselves are intact, but their firing and movement mechanisms are wrecked. That cool submarine feature that I found? Busted, the ballast tanks are ruptured, and the pump system’s wrecked. Engine’s working, but it’s damaged, so the ship’s running at about half power. The rear hangar’s trashed too, plus that weird catapult… Seriously, where did you find this thing? A relic dumpster?”

“What about the materials we got in the hold already? Can’t you use those?” I asked, ignoring the rib at my _perfectly okay choice of seafaring vessel_ , to which Gears’ reply was to pull a paper from the pile and hand it over to me. This one I could actually read, and listed all the crates and boxes that had been inside the cargo area, with the contents neatly noted under each numbered crate.

“Not enough to work everything. And there’s still two other problems to deal with.”

“What _now_?”

“First, the money, obviously,” and I couldn’t help but cringe at that. “Yeah, there’s that little problem. We’re gonna need a _ton_ of it to pay for everything, so that’s definitely a priority. However we do it, we _have_ to do it… My suggestion is clapping some idiots in the seas and cashing in their bounties, but we’ll see.”

“Okay, we’ll burn those ships when we get there. What about the other problem?”

“That would be a working place. And before you say anything,” he interjected, just as I opened my mouth to speak. “We can’t work here because they don’t have a shipyard properly equipped to handle an iron-clad, much less heavy engineering like this. I need a better port, better space… Not the tools though, those I have with myself.”

Left unspoken was the warning Soku had given us two days ago, right after Goto was shipped for his court martial: we had, at most, four days before the Marines came knocking for me and Gears, plus Prydwen probably for being an “associate” or some made up crap. We had already burned forty-eight of those hours.

In other words? We had to skedaddle. _Quick_.

With a sigh, I threw the paper into the table, scratching my head in annoyance. “Okay… I’ll have Prydwen ready the _Spirit_ to leave tomorrow morning, first thing. We need a heading, though. Any recommendations?”

“Hmm… I can think of a few places that would be peaceful enough _and_ have proper installations…” muttered the engineer, before shaking his head and rolling up the paper again. “But let’s leave it for tomorrow. More peace, more time, less people knowing where we’re going…” A yawn escaped the boy’s lips, and he rubbed his eye tiredly. “Huh… Coffee must have run its… course…”

Before he could fall over and hit his head on the table (which I’d very much allow to happen, mind you, because it’d be hilarious), an armored arm wrapped around Gears’ torso, with Prydwen carefully picking him up on a bride carry.

I still didn’t understand how she could be this fast and _this_ quiet, but it made for a novel experience, at least.

“I will take engineer Gears to his quarters, captain Saga,” said the centaur quietly, to which I simply smiled and nodded. And with that, she trotted back towards the _Spirit_ , carrying in her arms an utterly exhausted young genius-slash-mecha pilot.

… You know my crew was off to an _amazing_ start.

Unfortunately, I also felt my sleepiness crawling up my back, so it was about time to call it quits for today. Taking all the paperwork and throwing it into one of the wall crates, simultaneously hoping that I hadn’t ruined all that hard work, I began shambling off into the ship as well…

“So you’re leaving, huh?”

Right up to the point a young, determined voice called out from somewhere behind me. And lo and behold, behind me was Matsu, his face covered in dirt and expression as threatening as a kid could make. I could see his clothes being dirty as well, some scuff-marks on his arms and legs, and even a… Band-aid across his nose? Huh… Oh right, should probably reply.

“Hey there, Matsu… What you doing out here so late?” I managed to yawn out, feeling my tiredness clobber me over my head with every word I slurred.

“I came here to see how our ‘glorious savior’ was doing. And you look like crap,” snarked the boy, punctuated by me yawning loudly at his words. “That probably explains it too. Haven’t slept well?”

“You can say that again… That’s not your full reason though, is it?”

“… Yeah… Listen, I—”

“You can’t come with me, Matsu.”

“But why not?!”

“Because where I’m going is no place for a child,” I replied coldly, feeling my drowsiness vanish to whatever place Zoro’s sense of direction fucked off to. “You could have gotten hurt badly back there, and this was just with that weakling captain. The rest of the sea won’t be as easy, and the Grand Line even less so. I’m only taking those that can fight back against whatever the sea throws at us.”

It certainly didn’t make me happy to see Matsu standing there with his teeth clenched hard, head lowered and fists shaking, but it had to be said. Calmly, I knelt down and put a hand on his shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. “The day you can go to the sea will come, but not now. And besides… Someone’s gotta keep things safe here, don’t you think? And who better than you for that?”

For a moment, the kid didn’t move, and I found myself hoping I hadn’t crushed his dreams or something nasty. Thankfully, after a short moment, Matsu looked up at me again and rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand and pinning me with a fierce glare.

“You… Fine! But you better believe I’ll keep getting stronger! And when I find you again, I’ll kick your ass something fierce, ya hear me?!”

“Heh… Alright then. It’s a promise.”

**-O-**

_Aboard a Marine IA ship…_

“Damn him… Damn the Hermit!”

Inside the brig, shackled and stripped of all but his underwear, Goto growled and ground his teeth to dust.

His greatest chance… His path to glory, ruined by a brat and a bum! How dare they!

 _Still… Kokoko… You won’t get away unscathed, damn Hermit… The Marines were not my only buyers…_ _And you will taste soon of their revenge!_

**-O-**

_The following morning…_

I did not expect this much celebration.

The townsfolks were all gathered in the docks, cheering and waving goodbye as the _Spirit of Freedom_ readied to leave port. Behind the mob, the Marines stood at the ready, just in case anything bad went down. And right at the forefront, in the same pose as he always seemed to hold, was the commodore, with his ever-present pipe hanging from his lips, standing across from me, Gears and Prydwen. Atop the deck knelt the Brave Soldier, its glass eyes dull and lifeless, with ropes tying it securely in place.

“It would seem this is farewell, young ones,” said Soku with a smile, smoke wafting from between his lips. “Though the circumstances of our meeting are less than pleasant, I am hopeful that our paths may cross at a later date in more pleasing positions.”

“Likewise, commodore,” I replied with a smile of my own. “Glad to see not all the Marines are lost causes.”

“Hmph… I also hope your opinion of the Navy betters itself throughout your travels.”

“With respect, commodore… I highly doubt that.”

“How about we leave before you two punch each other or something?” asked Gears, his voice muffled due to the chocolate bar held between his teeth. “Big ocean out there and what not, we got a lot of water to cross.”

“I concur with engineer Gears, captain Saga,” added Prydwen, her posture just as regal as always. “Commodore Soku, we take our leave now.”

“Then to all of you, safe travels.”

And with those final parting words, we climbed back onto the _Spirit of Freedom_ , quickly making our way back onto the bridge. Now cleared of most debris, all that was left was the damaged instrument panels, a few old seats, and the steering wheel right in front of the large glass windows, granting a wide view of everything ahead of the ship, and the intact levers and pulleys surrounding it.

Calmly, Prydwen took hold of the metal wheel and pulled back on one of the levers. With a low groan, the ship’s engine came to life, pulling the sea water from below the metal vessel and pumping it out the hydro jets lining its sides. And as gracefully as it had arrived, the _Spirit of Freedom_ began sliding out of the dock, raising small waves up as its multi-ton body returned to the sea.

“So… Our destination, Gears?” I asked the engineer, who promptly threw a map of the West Blue onto the ground and used his Cool Stick to smack one island of many.

“Revolv Island. Grandiose mercenary and bounty hunter haven, with plenty of shipyards to use, and golden opportunities to make money.”

_BOOM_

“… Assuming we make it out of here, of course.”

“Goddammit, why can’t shit be easy for once?!”

As me and Gears clambered down back towards the deck, Prydwen expertly maneuvered the ship and shut off the engines, using its pure momentum to turn the _Spirit_ out into the sea before dropping the anchors to keep it still. And indeed, as soon as we reached the deck, we caught sight of our attackers: two large ships, with fish head Jolly Rogers emblazoned onto their sails, Marine ship turrets bristling at their fore and looking like someone took massive skeletons and bolted them onto wooden hulls.

“Who the hell are those guys?” I asked aloud, just as another plume of water rose from a missed cannon shot rose into the air and splashed both of us with sea water.

“Oh, so that’s who Goto was offering the robots to…”

“… And you didn’t mention them before _because_?”

“Hey give me a break, I had about a dozen other things that took priority then some no-name criminals, including fixing your boat!” shouted back the engineer as he glared at the ships in the horizon. “Dammit, and I haven’t fixed the Soldier yet… Got any plans?”

Yet before I could even think of a sarcastic reply to that, we were almost deafened by a loud booming sound, followed by a blast of air almost throwing me and Gears off out feet. And once more, the commodore appeared right next to us, as calm as ever even as I tried to _not_ yelp like a dying seal.

“Allow me to assist you with your woes, Hermit,” he spoke in a cheerful tone, bouncing a large cannonball on his right hand. “Consider it a return for your public services.”

And as another cannon volley fell around the _Spirit_ , Soku grasped the cannonball tightly, reared his arm back…

“ _Mach Cannon_.”

And _threw it_.

The ball parted the sea beneath it, a cone of air forming around it as it flew towards the left ship. Without any chance to dodge the oncoming projectile, the ship was torn from bow to stern, sending broken wood and unfortunate pirates flying in all directions. Its twin, apparently realizing that a change of tactics was needed, immediately began moving towards us, still firing its cannons at our immobile ship. The fact they were moving, however, proved to be a detriment to their accuracy, and so their shots began missing even further than before.

“Well, half of your job is now done, Hermit,” said Soku as he stepped back and cast a sidelong glance to me. “Please handle the other half diligently.” And with those parting words, he vanished again, reappearing at the edge of the pier just as smoothly as he had landed aboard the _Spirit._

“Well that’s great… How do we hit the other one?”

“Allow me, engineer Gears.”

The boy turned towards the back of the ship, just in time to see Prydwen stride forward from inside the hangar, her anchor spear and shield already in hand. The centaur stopped between us and stared at the approaching ship with the same stoic expression she always seemed to hold before striding past and forward. “In my duty as ship guard, I will fell these foes.”

… Oh… Oh-ho-hoh… Oh, this was gonna be _good_.

“Hey, Prydwen!” I called out as she trotted towards the bow of the ship. And when the centaur turned to face me, I gave her a thumbs up and a wry smile. “Make it flashy!”

“As you wish, captain Saga,” she replied as calmly as ever before turning to face the oncoming pirate ship. Prydwen stared at the oncoming vessel, her face a mask of pure serenity, before raising her anchor lance into the air.

Just as the pirates fired again, several cannonballs aimed straight at the Soul.

The centaur drew in one breath, closing her eyes…

“ _Aegir_.”

And waved her anchor down.

And ahead of the Soul, a wall of water rose from the ocean, striking the cannonballs and tossing them into the sky like pebbles, where they exploded harmlessly.

The moment after, Prydwen turned her anchor-spear and gaze towards the pirate ship, as a roaring lance of water coalesced around her weapon. The enemy, seemingly unable to see the attack coming, stayed their course.

A fatal mistake.

“ _Poseidon’s Lance_.”

And like cannon fire returned, the spear shot forth, parting the sea beneath it as it raced towards the pirate ship that only now had begun turning. The attack gored through the wooden hull, punching a hole from one side to the other and tearing a chunk of the vessel’s keel. As the ship buckled under its own weight and began to collapse into itself, Prydwen calmly trotted back, holstering her anchor onto her shield.

And me? I just watched it all, casting a sidelong glance at Gears so I could marvel at his shocked expression. Though I couldn’t really make fun of him for it.

I had the same reaction when she had told me of her ability all those years ago, and the fruit that had given it.

The Spout-Spout Fruit.

“Alright, we’re clear! Let’s blow this popsicle stand and split!”

**-O-**

On the coast, the gathered masses watched as the red iron-clad resumed its path away from Nissus Island, while further in the horizon the two wrecked pirate ships began to vanish beneath the sea, with their passengers already scrambling for their longboats.

But most of all, Soku watched in grand amusement as his newest “acquaintances” left his island, his pipe carefully held between his teeth.

“Well, well… So this is the reason you failed in your assault of the ship, hm?”

“Yes, commodore… Unfortunately so.”

“Quite a powerful fruit indeed… Well, I suppose it was an unexpected situation. For now, Private Mester, take a few ships and fetch me those pirates before they drown. I believe their interrogation will be… Most fruitful.”

“At once, commodore.”

**-O-**

_Two weeks later, West Blue open waters…_

“Alright now give me the screwdriver case.”

“Coming up.”

“Hup… Okay, thanks. Keep the hammer and wrenches close too, might need a bit of help with the servos.”

“Already in hand.”

Did I ever mention that travel time sucks? Because it does. It really, _really_ does. Especially when nothing happens.

Well sure, nothing happening means at least that the Marines or pirate crews weren’t actively chasing us, something that had become a massive priority now that Gears had joined me. Sure, the Navy had far more powerful stuff than a mecha, but I knew the tech would be something Vegapunk would most definitely use in his Pacifista project, or whatever other monstrosity the World Government forced him to build. That also played into our current predicament: finishing the repairs to the Brave Soldier, now inside the cleaned up hangar, plus making the adjustments for it to fight in marine conditions.

A.k.a, let the thing have some hover capacity just in case _something_ tried pushing it into the ocean for an easy kill.

Coupled with that was the more basic repairs Gears had been running on the insides of the _Spirit_. Nothing key, just clean up and repairs of the rooms. On one hand, it ate up some of the material storages we had: wootz steel for the doors and locks, electronics for repairing lighting and control systems in the bridge, a type of metal alloy called “Knock Iron” that was apparently highly shock-resistant for the interior like hallways and ceilings…

Plus a few more… Unique materials. Like Liquor Iron Ore for the turrets’ mechanisms, something called “Volt Ore” that he could use to upgrade the hydro-engine to generate more electrical energy… And the main enchilada…

**xOx**

_“Volcanic Steel?” I asked, looking at the small dark-grey rectangle he was spinning in his hand._

_“Yup. That’s the stuff the hull’s made of, but this one’s aged and battered. Whoever abandoned the ship never fixed or replaced the plating, so it stayed broken,” answered Gears, tapping the rectangle against the wall behind him, causing a surprisingly deep gong-like sound. “Replacing the whole thing is the best solution now.”_

_“So what makes that steel so special?”_

_“Oh you know, it’s just the metal equivalent of the Adam Tree, no biggie.” The way he snickered when he saw my eyes widen was probably golden to him, but I was busy trying to keep myself from dropping my jaw. “Yep, it’s pretty damn strong. Course, no one’s tried to build one out of the thing cause it’s so damn rare.”_

_“… How rare?”_

_“Rare enough. The ore needed for this stuff, Magma Stone, only happens in places with extremely high temperatures, like volcanoes or magma deposits… Hence the name. And we can forget about buying it, half a ton of the stuff costs four hundred million beris at the lowest, so we’re gonna have to dig it up somewhere… And it just so happens I know rumors of a place… In the Grand Line.”_

**xOx**

Bottom line? We were dirt poor still, still needing a crew and with a mighty need for resources to make the _Spirit of Freedom_ Grand Line-worthy either in the Blues, or at the immediate entrance of the Line. If we took too long, we’d run the risk of losing the _Spirit_ mid-way through the journey.

And I wasn’t going to have her end up like the Merry, no fucking way.

“Alright, gimme the hammer. Just gotta finish the knee joint.”

My musings stopped once I realized Gears had called me out again, his hand outstretched and awaiting the requested tool. As I passed the requested hammer, we both felt the entire ship lurch, the Brave Soldier listing slightly against the chains holding it in place, before coming to a halt with a loud, metallic groan.

“Holy--!!”

“Whoa, whoa!!”

Both me and Gears braced with whatever we could hold onto, unsecured tools tumbling into the floor in a cacophony of clangs, though thankfully the big-small mecha did not decide to break the chains and flatten the two squishy humans currently healing him.

“Captain Saga, engineer Gears, we have encountered something,” called out Prydwen as… _Somehow_ appeared in the hangar, nevermind the fact she had been in the bridge, helming the ship.

“Okay, that was her…” grumbled said engineer as he climbed down from the Brave Soldier, an old man scowl in his face. “Saga, tell your ship guard to drive smoother.”

“Noted… Prydwen, what is it?”

“There is a ship in the horizon, port side. Its flag is not pirate, but is still… Unique.”

Unique flag? Wonder if it could be some other free crew or something like that… Worth taking a look, maybe.

“Gears, how ready is the Soldier?”

“Ready enough,” replied the boy, giving the mecha a tap on the leg. “Big guy can shoot and fight at least.”

“Alright… Let’s see that mystery ship then.”

So we stepped out onto the deck, Prydwen passing me a spyglass as we did so before pointing to a specific direction at our port side. So I opened the spyglass, put it to my eye, and…

“ … Prydwen… You said their flag was ‘unique’.”

“Correct, captain Saga.”

“You could have warned me about the naked girl, you know?”

“Apologies, captain Saga.”

“… Well… Might as well do this. Gears, get inside the Soldier. We’re gonna meet some neighbors.”

**-O-**

“Hey chief! Take a look there!”

“What is it, ensign?”

“Got a weird ship off to our starboard coming closer. Over there, see?”

“Hmm… Yes… I see it.”

“What you want us to do, chief?”

“Gather up the crew… And warn the Boss.”

“You got it, chief.”

“Chief? Something wrong—Ooo, we got visitors?! Excellent! I’ll go make preparations!”

**~O~**

**There we go.**

**A shorter chapter, but more light-hearted. Our introduction is done, so now we move onto the big process of getting all the shit we need for the Grand Line! Nothing like a fetch quest sequence to make things fuuuuuuuuuuun.**

**Still, I’m mostly proud of this one. I had half a mind of adding more, but honestly it’d feel artificial at best.**

**In a more positive note, damn, I wrote this in 8 days? That’s honestly a surprising record.**

**Now, I _was_ planning on starting work on the next Meister of your Future. But I caught myself in a very good mood, and also caught myself in a very… _Specific_ mood.**

**I could say… I want to get my game on~**

**Stay tuned, folks~ New project oncoming, let’s see how it fares.**


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